Mischief In The Making
by KayLestrange
Summary: The untold story of the 5th, female Marauder. Follow her story of friends, boys, self harm, love, and self acceptance. OC/SB. Rated T for later chapters, will possibly change to M much later. Not a crossover with glee, Naya Rivera is simply my OC Faceclaim.
1. Prologue

**Mischief in the Making**

**Prologue**

**Authors note:**

**So here's the prologue! I hope you guys enjoy, please review.**

**WARNING: EXTREMELY CUTE AND OoC six-year-old James Potter. I wanted him to be cute, since the only honest people are either young children or drunk.**

* * *

"James, there's a new family moving in next door! Look at that little girl, just sitting on her steps. She looks lonely, you should talk to her!" Mrs. Potter suggested excitedly.

James was playing outside in the gardens, when he looked over and saw a young girl his age sitting on her steps, indeed looking rather lonely. James dashed across the large yard, and ran in to the new neighbours front yard.

The little girl looked up, clearly surprised that the boy had approached her. She clearly wasn't used to people being nice to her.

"Hi, I'm James. What's your name?" the little boy asked.

"Valerie." she said very quietly.

James frowned a little bit at how quiet she was.

"Wanna be my friend?" James asked.

Valerie, who was surprised by this, nodded and smiled. But then she frowned a little.

"What's wrong?" James inquired.

"...back home a lot of people didn't like me. They called me names 'n stuff. Made fun of they way I look." She said the last part very quietly.

James looked at her, wondering how anybody could make fun of the way she looked.

"They're dumb. You're pretty." He said very bluntly. Valerie blushed, she was only used to getting compliments from her family members.

"Well, I promise I won't make fun of you." James said.

"You're okay, James," the brown-haired girl said with a smile.


	2. Chapter 1

Patricia Potter and Harmony Lopez sat at the Potter's dining table, discussing their children.

"I'd really love to go out with Will tonight to that new muggle restaurant, but I don't know where I would leave Valerie." Harmony said.

"Oh, that's all right! Just leave her here, we'd love to have her!" Patricia offered excitedly.

Patricia was extremely happy that James had friends in the neighbourhood, since she couldn't have any more children and James didn't have any older siblings. Harmony, who feared that Valerie would have a hard time making friends and trusting people, was ecstatic that Valerie had a friend who she clearly trusted and was extremely close with. In America, Valerie went to a muggle preschool where she had two friends who she wasn't very close to. Harmony noticed that when Valerie went to the park with her friends, she was always quiet and easygoing around them.

With James, however, Valerie was completely different. She was loud, stubborn, fun, and _happy_, just like any other seven-year-old.

"That would be perfect." Harmony accepted.

James and Valerie, each in their pajamas, sat cross-legged on the rug in the middle of James' room.

"James, what do you think Hogwarts will be like?" Valerie asked.

"It'll be so much fun. We'll be in the same house, pull all kinds of pranks together, and have all of our classes together." James predicted.

However, there was something Valerie was extremely nervous about. What if when they got to Hogwarts, James didn't want to be her friend anymore? What if he made new friends? What if they weren't in the same house? James was Valerie's only friend. In America, kids would mercilessly tease her about her tan skin color, her curly hair, and her accent. Now she had a double accent! They would sense the American speak and her Puerto Rican accent on top of it. What if the other kids at Hogwarts teased her about those things? What if James' new friends didn't like her? Valerie pushed all these thoughts aside. ___Things won't be the same this time__, _she thought to herself.

"Val, you okay? You seem worried." James asked. James was pretty thick most of the time, but when it came to Valerie he knew when she was upset. Valerie sighed.

"It's just.. when we get to Hogwarts.. you'll make new friends. I know you will. What if they don't like me?" Valerie asked.

James looked at her as if she were crazy.

"I can honestly say, Val, if they don't like you they're no friends of mine. My friends are your friends." James insisted.

"Well.. what if the other kids don't like me? What if they make fun of me, like they did back home? Er, in the states?" she wondered.

"Forget about them. They don't matter. Anything they say is just lies to make you feel bad. They're mean." James assured her.

"James... what if you stop being my friend?"

"I promise I won't stop being your friend."

"Pinky swear?" Valerie questioned, holding out her little finger. The two hooked pinkies, and Valerie smiled, because she knew that James wouldn't break his promise.

Valerie was absolutely right. For the next few years, James and Valerie were inseparable. They were like brother and sister. They did everything together, and they defined what being best friends meant.

* * *

**August, 1971**

**"JAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAMES!" A feminine voice yelled, her voice bouncing as she flew up the steps to her friends bedroom.**

**"VAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAL!" Responded James, mocking her tone.**

**"I got it, I got it, I got it! I knew I was gonna get it, but I got it!" Valerie informed him.**

**"Val, if this is something personal and girly, I'm not sure I wanna-" **

**"Not ****_that_****, you dunderhead. I got my Hogwarts letter!" The girl responded.**

**"Oh. Well that's silly, you knew you were going to get that," James replied.**

** Valerie rolled her eyes and plopped down on to James' bed. It was exactly one am, and neither of them should have been up, but James' parents had left him alone for the evening and Valerie's mother hadn't heard her sneak out. Val had warned the raven haired boy of her visit with a torch, as they signaled each other things through their windows that looked in to the others room. Val had explained to James that in WWII, people had used torches flash signals at each other, like Morse code, so in America they called them flashlights. This gave the boy the idea to use the torch to signal each other through their windows. **

** "I'm so tired. When are your parents going to be home? It's one in the morning," Val wondered**

**"Any minute, really. They probably think I'm sleeping, so they won't worry about getting home so soon." James answered.**

** Valerie looked down, cursing at the ground beneath her. She ****_wished _****her mother would leave the house more often. The thought of her mother brought up memories of what had happened earlier in the day.**

**_ "MAMI, I'm not a baby anymore! You can trust me!" Valerie protested._**

**"_You had absolutely no right to sneak James in here! The house was a mess, your room was a mess, and more importantly, you're both eleven! You have no business being alone in your room with him." The woman responded._**

**_ Valerie felt a rush of anger run through her veins. Had her own mother just implied that she had something romantic going on with James? James was practically her brother. She didn't know why, but she got the odd feeling James hadn't gone home and was listening through the front door._**

**_ "Mami! Para! James eres mi hermano. No estoy en amorarse con el. Yo invito porque el esta triste! James y yo no tiene otros _****amigos, ****_mami. El es mi mejor amigo, y el no es mi _****novio. ****_James es mi vida, es mi mundo. Yo no tengo otros amigos, solo James._****" ****_Valerie responded. She knew James would have no idea what she was saying._**

**_ "Ah, si? James es tu vida, si? _****James va a cocine para ti? El va a llavar tu ropa? El no es tu vida, el es tu amigo, y no mas! Tu eres correcto, no es tu novio. El NUNCA va a esta tu novio!"**

**_Valerie had never heard her mother scream like that, and she never wanted to hear it again. _**

** "What's wrong?" James asked, rubbing his eyes. **

**"My mother and I had another fight. About you, mainly. She kept saying we spend too much time together, and got mad at me for bringing you up to my room. She has this twisted idea that we're boyfriend and girlfriend." Valerie responded.**

** James snorted, he would never look at Valerie as anything more than a sister. With that, the two of them slipped under the covers of James' king size, four poster bed. **

** "Maybe she is right a little bit. We're eleven, and we still sleep in the same bed sometimes," Valerie pondered.**

** "If that's the case, you're welcome to sleep on the couch."**

**Valerie fell fast asleep next to James, knowing she was lucky to have a friend like him,**


	3. Chapter 2

September 1st, 1971

James and Valerie made their way through the train, searching for an empty compartment. However, they were all occupied, so they sat in the compartment with one lone boy. He had loose, curly hair, grey eyes, and a cocky, arrogant smile. Val rolled her eyes at the smirk on the boys face as he noticed that she and James were holding hands. Their hands parted, and they made their way to sit across from him.

"Am I interrupting anything? Because if you two need private time to snog, I'll just head to another compartment." The dark haired boy remarked.

"Actually, you prat, James here is practically my brother, and neither of us appreciate your comment. However, we wouldn't mind you leaving at all, if that's what you want." Val retorted. James quickly got up and went to retrieve them candy from the cart.

"Really? Prat? Is that the best insult you have, love? You seem so sassy, I know you've got better than that," he challenged.

"What is your name exactly?" Val inquired.

"Sirius Black."

Val immediately rolled her eyes. She scanned the arrogant fiend, looking at every imperfection and flaw she could spot. He was pale, and one eye had a long scar extending to his hairline.

"Wrong. You have three choices. Porcelain, Scarface, or Sugar," Valerie challenged.

Sirius looked taken aback.

"I get Porcelain and Scarface, but where did Sugar come from?"

"One, I think it's funny and it would definitely embarrass you if I called you that in public. Two, I know you have the potential to be sweet. Three, you don't have to be sugar. I can be sugar," Valerie explained, leaning down and pecking her lips against his cheek.

Sirius flushed to his ears, and Valerie grinned.

"You're blushing, but the rest of your face is pale! Now you really are one of those China dolls with the porcelain skin. You're Porcelain!" Val exclaimed.

"And what is your name, love?"

"Valerie Lopez. But you can call me anything you like, Porcelain," she explained.

"Good. I pick Sugar." Valerie instantly felt a warm, fuzzy feeling in her stomach as he called her Sugar.

James walked back to the compartment, only to find Valerie sitting close to Sirius.

"James, this is Sirius Black," Val introduced him.

"I see," said James.

Sirius nodded.

"Well, Sugar, I present you with more sugar," Sirius said, taking some of James' chocolate frogs and handing them to Valerie.

"Sugar? Who said you could call her that?" James asked sharply, a hint of jealousy in his voice.

"Sugar here told me I was allowed to call her whatever I like," Sirius explained.

Val immediately blushed, realizing how risque that sounded. James simply looked at her incredulously and laughed, shaking hands with Sirius.

"You're okay, Black." James settled.

Eventually, a boy with dark, greasy hair entered their compartment, looking shy and unsure. Before Valerie could welcome him, James and Sirius immediately insulted his greasy hair and large nose, dubbing him Snivellus.

"What was that for, James? He just wanted to come sit with us," Val inquired.

"Don't look at me! Sirius made fun of him too." James declared.

"Hey, it was funny. Calm down, Sugar, we were only messing with him." Sirius defended himself.

Val rolled her eyes.

"You can sit here if you want, Sni- er, what's your name?" Val asked.

"Severus."

"No last name?"

"Severus Snape," he added.

"Well, Severus, if you'd like to, you are welcome to sit with my friends and I. This, sitting next to me, is Sirius Black, and he's James Potter," Val introduced them, attempting to be kind.

"Your friends don't seem to like me very much, so I'll find somewhere else to sit, thank you." Severus said, exiting. Valerie immediately followed after him, giving James and Sirius a glare.

"Listen, I know they can be really mean. They really don't mean any harm. Well, I don't know about Sirius, but James is really a good guy, I promise. I know you don't want to sit with us, but if you change your mind I'll keep them in check. You seem nice, is it alright if I come and sit with you, wherever you're going?" Val asked.

Severus nodded.

"I don't really have a place to sit though, so I've got to find one." Severus added.

Valerie and Severus made their way to a compartment where a young girl was sitting alone. She had bright red-orange hair, green eyes, and a dazzling smile. She looked nice, but she gave Val a horrible feeling. She pushed her judgments aside and sat down with Severus. They all introduced themselves to each other, (the red haired girl had introduced herself as Lily Evans) and talked for a bit, until Valerie remembered that she had left James and Sirius alone.

"Hey, guys, I'd like to stay and chat, but I kind of ditched my friends. Maybe we can talk again some other time, okay?" Val asked.

"Sure!" Lily said excitedly, "If we're in the same house, I hope we're room mates. You're really nice, Valerie."

Val smiled, and any negative thoughts she had about Lily disappeared.

"It would be wicked if I was your roommate! You're really nice too, Lily. I hope I get to talk to you both of you again," Val said genuinely.

The trio said their goodbyes, and Val rushed back to Sirius and James. When she saw Sirius smiling at her, she immediately smiled back. His smile was infectious, she couldn't not smile back.

"Hey, Sugar,"

"Hey, Val."

"Hey guys."

"Didn't think you would run off to go Snog Snivelly, Sugar. My feelings are hurt, I thought you belonged to me," Sirius said. Val giggled at his alliteration, blushing at the use of her nickname.

"I don't belong to anybody, Sirius," she said, taking a seat next to him. "However, James, I did meet a girl I think you'd like to snog. She was pretty, red hair, green eyes, nice, and she didn't stop smiling. You'd like her, I know it," she finished. James blushed, Val knew that he thought redheads were especially pretty.

Sirius frowned. "What makes you think I wouldn't want to snog her?" he inquired, slinging his arm over her shoulder.

"You're not allowed to. Also, she wasn't sassy enough" Val explained.

"Not allowed?" Sirius inquired. Val nodded.

"Not allowed to. You're only allowed to flirt with one girl at a time, and it looks like you have your eyes on somebody," Val said, looking Sirius in the eyes, causing him to roll them.

They quickly moved on, and the three of them spent the rest of the train ride laughing and talking about what Hogwarts would be like. James and Val predicted they'd be in Gryffindor, and Sirius said if he got in Gryffindor his parents would freak out, so he would love to be in that house. Sirius explained that he didn't agree with his family's pureblood-worshipping ideas. Val smiled at this, as she hadn't told Sirius she was half-blood. Her father had been a muggle-born.

When the train finally arrived, everyone began shuffling to the Great Hall, all the first years clumped up, unsure of where to sit. With that, the sorting ceremony began. Valerie hadn't been paying much attention, only noticing the houses of people that stuck out to her.

"Gryffindor!" The hat yelled as Sirius grinned.

"Gryffindor!" Lily stepped down from the stool, rushing to the Gryffindor table.

A boy with scars all over his face, who turned out to be Remus, stepped down from the stool after it had exclaimed, "Gryffindor!" Shortly after, it was Valerie's turn. Nervously, she walked up to the stool, sitting, waiting for the hat to be placed on her head.

_Please be Gryffindor, _she hoped.

_Hmm, you've definitely got the bravery and the chivalry, _the hat reasoned.

_However, you'd do just as good in Slytherin. _

_No! Sirius won't even look at me anymore! I'm only a half blood anyways! I can't be in-_

"GRYFFINDOR!" The hat shouted. Valerie sighed in releif, making her way to sit right next to Sirius, who sat across from Lily, Remus, and another pudgy boy who looked nervous and unsure. Val made sure to save a seat next to herself for James, which so happened to be right across from Lily. Valerie was across from Remus. Soon, it was James' turn.

"James Potter."

Before the hat was even fully settled on his messy hair, it shouted out, "GRYFFINDOR!" James had a wicked grin on his face as he ran to sit next to Valerie. All six of them chatted the whole dinner, and the pudgy boy had turned out to be called Peter. Just as Valerie had predicted, James was instantly smitten with Lily, and talked to her the whole time. Valerie could barely get a word in with her, and spent most of her time talking to Remus, who was plenty nice, but shy, and Sirius, who refused to stop calling her Sugar. When dinner ended, Valerie and Lily were excited to discover that they would be in the same room, and they instantly set up their beds right next to each other.

"Hey, what house did Severus end up in? I wasn't paying much attention." Val asked.

"Oh, he's in Slytherin," Lily replied. Val was about to say something, but she shrugged, not wanting to ruin the good foot she was on with Lily. The two of them settled in to their beds, their curtains open. The other three girls in the room were all huddled on one bed, discussing the latest installment of Witch Weekly.

"Lily, this is kind of weird, but do you think James is cute at all?" Valerie inquired. Lily immediately giggled.

"Yeah, he was cute, but a bit arrogant if you ask me," Lily answered. Val smiled.

"Trust me, he thinks you're adorable," Val said. "He is plenty arrogant, but he has a lot of redeeming qualities. I would know, we've practically been attached at the hip for the past five years." Val shared.

"Really? It didn't seem like it at dinner."

"Yeah, I know, he was pretty taken with somebody else," Val explained, making Lily blush.

"Well, you sure seemed taken by that Sirius bloke. He even had his arm around you sometimes!"

"Yeah, he's something, isn't he? But I just met him today." Val said, her brown eyes glittering. She heard loud giggles coming from the other side of the room.

"Like Sirius Black would want _you_." said one of the other girls.

"Yeah, why would he like you? You're not even that pretty. You have nappy, frizzy hair." one of the others added. Valerie's smile disappeared.

Lily simply rolled her eyes, getting under her covers and saying goodnight. Val was about to do the same, until she remembered she didn't have to take the torment. The curly haired girl crept down the steps, and made her way up to the boy's first year room. None of them were asleep yet, and the room was only occupied by James, Remus, Peter, and Sirius.

"Helloooo, Sugar. Came to give me a kiss goodnight?" Sirius teased, a smirking smugly. Val rolled her eyes, and the other boys in the room looked at her in anticipation for her to show him up.

"Why, of course, my love," Val responded, gathering looks of shock and laughter from the others. She relished in the attention, wanting to provoke a better reaction. She made her way over to Sirius, who stood up, a glint of anticipation in his eyes. Val slowly placed one hand on his shoulder and the other on his chest, delivering a kiss on the cheek so close to his lips he gasped a bit. When Sirius looked speechless, the rest of the boys laughed, Valerie smiled, as she got exactly what she wanted. Sirius just sat on the bed, frowning.

"Oh, come on love. Don't look so sad. I gave you what you wanted, didn't I? Now really, I only came to say goodnight to James. No snogging involved." Valerie said. She made her way to James' bed, shutting the curtain around it, receiving rather inappropriate noises from the boys.

"So, I spoke to Lily. She says you're cute." Val informed him. James grinned, as this was what he had hoped for and expected.

"Well, Sirius told me the same about you." James said.

"Really?"

"Well, not exactly, but he implied it." Val rolled her eyes, and opened the curtain.

"Could I stay here, James? The other girls in my room are making fun of me."

"And you didn't say anything?" Sirius inquired, making his way to sit next to Valerie. Soon, all five of them were seated on James' bed.

"Well, um, no." Sirius frowned at this answer.

"What did they say?" Remus asked.

"They said Sirius couldn't like me because I wasn't that pretty.. and that I had bad hair." The four boys looked incredulous.

"But you're pretty!" Sirius argued. Immediately, he blushed as the others looked at him questioningly.

"Well, it's true. You definitely aren't ugly. Wait a minute, why did they say that? Were you talking about me?" Sirius asked. It was Valerie's turn to blush.

"Well, Lily just made a comment that you and I seemed rather... close," Val explained.

"Oh."

The three boys made their way to their beds, each of them getting a hug from Valerie.

"So do I get to stay here?"

James looked at the innocence in Valerie's eyes, but he knew he would be teased by Sirius nonstop. He realized he had two options. Either kick her out and hurt her feelings, or let her sleep in his bed and get made fun of. So he swallowed his pride and compromised. He took one pillow off his bed along with one small throw blanket and slept on the small couch in the boys' room. The three boys laughed at James, and Val just smiled at him, mouthing a "thank you."

"You're whipped, mate." Sirius said. Valerie chucked a pillow at him.

"'Night, Sugar." said Sirius.

"'Night, Sirius."

"'Night, Val," the others said.

"'Night, guys." The five friends all fell asleep, drained by their first day at school. Valerie fell asleep in James' bed with a smile on her face, hoping that the kiss she shared earlier with Sirius wouldn't be the last.


	4. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer: I'm not J.K Rowling so these characters and this world isn't actually mine, unfortunately. Please review! CC always welcome!**

November 15th, 1971

"Happy Birthday!" four loud voices awoke the sleepy girl. She groaned in response.

"What time is it?" She whined.

"It's 9 In the morning, Sugar," Sirius answered.

"I'm not twelve for another fifteen minutes, which is just enough time for me to get ready for class." Valerie reasoned.

"Oh, get up, Val. It's Saturday," said James.

Finally, the tired girl rose, rubbing her eyes. In front of her, Sirius and Peter each held one wrapped gift. Sirius' was large, Peter's was smaller. Remus, on the other hand, held one large bag and one small wrapped present. James was holding a tiny cake with twelve tiny candles spread around the edges. It had just enough for five slices. Val rolled her eyes.

"You guys are too much, honestly. Cake? Really, and presents? You know you didn't have to." Valerie got up and the four boys arranged everything on the small table in their room. Valerie always slept in their room, but she took turns with James on the couch, and last night she had his bed. She walked to the bathroom, brushed her teeth, and noticed she had forgotten to tie her hair back, so naturally, it was a giant rats nest. She walked back in to the room, grabbed one of the books she had borrowed from the library on beauty along with her wand, and opened the book to a spell on untangling. She made her way back to the bathroom and performed the spell, her long brown hair instantly reverting to it's regular state. She gathered the top half of her hair and clipped it back like usual. She picked up the tube of mascara next to her comb, and applied a gentle layer of the brown product to her eyelashes. The boys were still in their pyjamas, so she figured she didn't have to change.

"I'm ready," Valerie announced as she made her way to sit around the small table with her friends.

"Cake for breakfast? I'm really ready,"she said with a grin.

"Ah ah ah, Sugar, presents first," Sirius stopped her.

"Well, if you insist. Remus, did you get me two gifts? You were holding two."

"No, I was holding James while he held the cake." Val nodded.

"Okay, mine first!" James exclaimed. He handed her the large, clear bag filled with red tissue paper. Valerie smiled, he had put it together himself. She tossed the tissue paper to the ground, peering in to the bag. She pulled out the record, confused.

"Um, James, I love Jackson 5 and all, but why'd you buy me a muggle record? I don't have a record player." Val questioned.

"We know." The four boys said in unison. Sirius picked up the large box off of the ground, and set it on the table, grinning.

"You didn't. Sirius Orion Black, I know you didn't buy me a-"

"OPEN IT!" They all yelled.

"Okay, okay, sheesh," Valerie answered, opening the gift. She tore off the paper, revealing, just like she had assumed, a record player. She grinned brightly, launching herself at Sirius.

"Oh my gosh, you're so amazing! How did you even know what a record player is? How did you get it? Oh my goodness, I could just kiss you!" Valerie praised Sirius.

"I wouldn't mind that. Don't worry about where I got it, but Remus gave us all the idea once James mentioned you liked to sing. Happy birthday, Sugar." Sirius answered. Valerie kissed him on the cheek in response, still glowing about her new record player. She typically didn't get anything back when she kissed Sirius but a blush, but this time his face remained the same. He had a few inches on Valerie, so he leaned down slightly to kiss her on the head. Valerie immediately smiled, turning back to her friends, who looked at the pair with smiles.

"Thank you too, Remus. That was very thoughtful of you," Valerie thanked, hugging him tightly. He hugged her right back, until she pulled away and Remus handed her his gift.

"It's no record player, but I thought you might like it," he said, blushing. Remus blushed at every little thing, but she knew he was embarrassed that he couldn't shell out the fifty euros to buy a record player, even if it was his idea. Valerie smiled, opening the gift. Underneath the wrapping paper was a book about dogs, which Valerie loved.

"Thank you so much, Remus! I love dogs. How did you know?"

"You may have mentioned it once or twice," Remus said.

"Alright, me next!" Peter said. His gift was about the same size as Remus', so she figured it would be another book. She peeled back the paper, and just as she had suspected, it was a book. It was about Care of Magical Creatures, which was one of Valerie's favorite classes. This book in particular was about unicorns, which were her favorite magical creature.

"Thank you, Peter," she said, hugging him.

"No problem," he responded.

The five friends all lit the candles with their wands, turned out the lights, and drew the curtains. They sung Happy Birthday to her, while she smiled, enjoying the attention, which she didn't get much of at home, despite being an only child. She and her mother seemed to grow further and further apart. They fought more often, and she spent less time at her house and more at James' during the summer. She had confided in Sirius about this, who also had a very strained relationship with his mother. She and Sirius had grown very close, and in the short two and a half months they'd spent at Hogwarts, they grew nearly as close as she and James. Valerie blew out all her candles once they had finished, wishing for something she didn't think she would- a kiss from Sirius. Her own wish surprised her, she knew she was too young to kiss anyone on the lips, or have a boyfriend. She didn't even realize she had a crush on Sirius- they always joked around, pretending to be dating to provoke a reaction, but she never thought she liked him like that. She dismissed the wish, and blew out the last candle with a wish to be closer to her mother. But that nagging feeling to want to touch Sirius, kiss him, hug him, just make contact, was always there.

November 30th, 1971

Valerie rose earlier than usual, as today was an important day. Twelve years ago, to this very day, Sirius Orion Black was born. Valerie smiled, and quickly hopped off of the couch, dashing in the the bathroom to get ready as quietly as possible, since the others were asleep. She got herself ready, adding a bit of clear lipgloss to her usual routine of just mascara. She wanted to look her best today, so she pulled a book out of her purse about hair, and her wand. She flipped through the book, looking for a specific spell. She found exactly what she was looking for- a spell on straightening hair. She ignored the warning about damaging her hair, and recited the spell, her wand pointed at her hair. For a couple seconds, she felt extreme heat surrounding her hair, but it went away as soon as she opened her eyes, looking in the mirror to see what she had never seen before- thick, silky, deep brown straight hair. She smiled brightly. At least today she wouldn't be teased about her hair, and she was sure Sirius would love it. She marched brightly to his bed, tossing open the curtains, about to scream out a loud, "happy birthday!" That is, until she noticed how peaceful Sirius looked.

_He looks cute when he sleeps, _her conscience pestered her. She ignored the thought, sitting gently next to Sirius, his mouth slightly agape, soft snores escaping. A small wet spot was on his pillow, most likely drool. She smiled, her mother had always said drooling was gross, and she wouldn't marry a man who drooled- it was a sign he was messy and wouldn't clean up after himself. Valerie rolled her eyes at the memory, and, just to defy her mother, she would marry a man who drooled. Perhaps not Sirius, but anyone, really. Valerie realized that she was watching her friend sleep, a thought that disturbed her. She gently put one arm on his shoulder and shook him.

"Wake up, Sirius."

"Mmm. No. Go away."

"I thought you belonged to me," Valerie said, repeating the words Sirius had said to her months ago.

"I don't belong to anyone."

"Yes, you do. Now wake up, it's your birthday."

"I suppose you're right," he said, sitting up. He noticed Valerie's position. "'Morning, Sugar. You been sitting there for a while?" He inquired. Valerie simply rolled her eyes, shaking her head.

"Get up, Sirius, and be quiet. Everyone else is asleep."

"Well, since James'll have my head for saying it, let me say you look really pretty today." Valerie smiled at the comment.

"Thank you. Oh, and happy birthday. Why don't we sneak off to the kitchens and get you a cake? I have a present I want to give you in private." Valerie had been summoning the courage to give Sirius his gift, which she'd been planning since her own birthday. Sirius wiggled his eyebrows at this.

"In private? I don't know if I'm ready for that, Sugar." Sirius said, grinning. Ever since some fifth year girl got pregnant, Dumbledore decided that all of the students should receive "the talk" from one of their professors. First year girls had their talk from McGonogall, and the boys from Dumbledore. Ever since then, the boys had made countless wise cracks and remarks on the topic. Valerie found it tactless when in public, but she had plenty of jokes in private. Val smacked him on the arm, grinning.

"Mind out of the gutter, Black," she warned.

"Oooh, calling me by my last name? Did I make you mad? Sugar's not so sweet anymore, is she?"

"Oi! Get a room, you two," James called sleepily from his bed.

"That's our cue," Valerie said. She grabbed Sirius by the wrist, not caring that they were both in their pyjamas. It was only 6:30, anyways, so nobody would be up besides the house elves. The two of them dashed down to the kitchens, where Valerie had set up a table with a white cloth on top, and two chairs around it, across from each other. The house elves surrounded the two of them, as Valerie was a frequent visitor who was always kind to the elves.

"Hi, guys. Could I just get two cupakes?" Valerie asked.

"Of course, Lady Valerie. What flavor?" The house elf that had asked this was called Anixa.

"One chocolate and one vanilla please, Anixa." Valerie responded gratefully.

"As Lady Valerie wishes."

The two of them sat at the table, as the house elves brought over two cupcakes on a plate. Valerie pulled a candle out of her bag, sticking it in the chocolate cupcake and lighting it with her wand.

"Happy birthday, Sirius," she said, pushing the cupcake towards him slowly, as not to blow out the light.

Sirius leaned forward, blowing out the light, looking deep in thought.

"What did you wish for?" Valerie asked curiously.

"Well that's a secret, of course. You can't tell a wish, it won't come true," he said as if it was the most obvious thing. Valerie rolled her eyes, and took a bite out of her own cupcake.

"Sirius, this is a weird question, but have you ever kissed anyone?"

"Does the time I got stuck under a mistletoe with Bellatrix count?"

"Eeew! She's your cousin!"

"Eh, it was only on the cheek. My parents are probably related, anyways."

"Er.. why?"

"It's the whole pureblood thing. They'll only marry other purebloods, so their options are pretty narrow. But to answer your question, no, I've never kissed anyone on the lips. Why, thinking you might wanna change that?" he answered, wiggling his eyebrows.

"No, not really. Just wondering. Some of the girls in my room were teasing me about not having kissed anyone." Sirius sighed at this.

"You can't keep letting them talk to you like that, Val," Sirius answered. Val frowned.

"You only call me Val when you're serious."

"I'm always Sirius, Sugar."

"Oh, shut it. That stopped being funny the first time you said it."

"Honestly, next time I hear you say they were teasing you, I'm going to hex them. You're really quick to defend yourselves around us when we tease you, what's the difference with them? Just tell them to shut up," Sirius suggested. Valerie only wished it was that easy. They teased her about the same stuff she'd got made fun of for in the U.S- her looks. Sirius sensed she was uncomfortable and quickly switched the topic.

"So, what was that gift you had for me?" Valerie smiled at him when he asked this.

"I have a song for you. I've never actually sung in front of you, but I wanted to. I really like this song. The sun is just coming up now, so it's fitting," Val answered. Sirius grinned. Val stood up, standing next to his chair, and began to sing.

_Here comes the sun, here comes the sun  
And I say it's all right_

Little darling, it's been a long cold lonely winter  
Little darling, it feels like years since it's been here

Here comes the sun, here comes the sun  
And I say it's all right

Little darling, the smiles returning to their faces  
Little darling, it seems like years since it's been here

Here comes the sun, here comes the sun  
And I say it's all right

Sun, sun, sun, here it comes  
Sun, sun, sun, here it comes  
Sun, sun, sun, here it comes

Little darling, I feel that ice is slowly melting  
Little darling, it seems like years since it's been clear

Here comes the sun, here comes the sun  
And I say it's all right  
Here comes the sun, here comes the sun  
It's all right, it's all right

Sirius looked shocked, as he hadn't actually expected her to be so good. He smiled, and clapped a bit to cool the nervous look on her face.

"Well, happy birthday. Oh, and I almost forgot. The song wasn't the part I wanted to do in private," she said, leaning down to give him a gentle kiss on the lips. Their lips just barely touched, they grazed so lightly she didn't consider it an actual kiss. With that, she dashed off, leaving behind a very shocked Sirius Black.


	5. Chapter 4

**November 30th, 1971. Sirius, James, Remus, and Peter's room.**

"WOOOOOOOO!"

"Calm down, mate, it was just a peck! Our lips barely touched," Sirius explained to James.

"Did you kiss her back? Oh gods, tell me you kissed her back! That girl is so insecure, if you didn't kiss her back, she'll just believe you hated it," James warned. Sirius shook his head, embarrassed.

"I was just too shocked. She doesn't seem very insecure, honestly, she's very confident around us," said Sirius. James shook his head in his hands. The great, oh-so-smooth Sirius Black was in too much shock to kiss back a girl.

"It's not like I'm going to date her, either. She doesn't want a boyfriend, she even put it in her diary," he said coolly.

"You read her diary? As in, the one with the blue cover that says 'do not read' on the spine?" James asked. Sirius simply nodded, and James began to laugh.

"You git, that's her decoy. She writes things she doesn't care if others know in there, and she updates it all the time so it won't look suspicious. Her real diary is on her at all times. I haven't even been able to get my hands on it, and I've been trying for four years," James explained.

"Clever, but we're going to have to be even more clever to get our hands on it," Sirius remarked. James nodded. At that moment, Remus walked in. The two boys grinned at him maliciously, because they knew just who could outsmart Valerie, and it was one Remus John Lupin.

"Oh no. I know just what you two are up to. You're planning something big, and you need somebody with more brains than you to carry out the dirty work. It's not going to happen, I won't end up in detention again," Remus argued.

"But.. but Remmy... I thought you loved me," Sirius said with a pout and puppy eyes. Remus groaned, he knew he couldn't resist the 'Sirius Black puppy pout combo', as he so elegantly described it. Nobody could truly resist it, besides the teachers. Sirius and James grinned, they knew they had reeled Remus in. Peter was the next to walk in, and they couldn't leave poor old Peter out of their plans, now could they? The four friends sat on James' bed, plotting their master plan to get that bloody diary, because once they had it, Sirius would be able to read Valerie like a book, no pun intended.

* * *

**November 30th, 1971. Lily, Valerie, Violet, Alice, and Alicia's room.**

Valerie sobbed in her bed, scarfing down the minimal amount of chocolate frogs and cupcakes she'd managed to salvage from her own collection and the kitchens, respectively. Lily sat next to her, while Violet and Alicia gossiped in their beds. Alice was much too nice to gossip about anybody, really, so she was in the library.

"It was horrible, Lils. I sang for him, and he loved it, and then I went, I just gave him the tiniest little peck on the lips, and he didn't kiss me back! It was so horrifying, I ran away before he got the chance to say anything. How embarrassing," Valerie managed to say through her sobs.

"Oh, Val, you know he likes you. He was probably just a little too shocked to respond. Besides that, think, you're both twelve. I know you'll be friends for a long time, so in five or ten years, you'll just look back and laugh. Just calm down. I'm sure that right now Sirius is with James, fretting about how he didn't kiss you back," Lily consoled her.

The two of them could hear Violet and Alicia giggling, most likely about what they'd just heard. Valerie got up and went to the bathroom to wash up, leaving the door slightly ajar. She heard Lily mutter about wanting to whack Sirius, then she got up and left the room. She sighed gently, she was alone with Alicia and Violet now. Valerie washed her face, trying to calm down the redness, however she could not conceal the puffiness in her face. She rolled her eyes at herself. Her name meant strength, and she was in Gryffindor, for crying out loud! She shouldn't be crying like this. Valerie looked down, the bathroom scale taunting her. She had been stress eating lately in anticipation of giving Sirius his gift, and had mainly been eating junk. She stepped on the scale, awaiting her fate.

"50 kilograms?!" Valerie nearly shrieked. Little did she know, others were waiting in the doorway for her.

"Aww, somebody put on a little weight?" Alicia taunted.

"It's ok, at least now we know why Sirius didn't kiss you back. He doesn't like fat girls," Violet said, an arrogant smirk on her face. Valerie immediately stepped down from the scale, terrified of what the girls would say next. She then remembered what Sirius had said to her earlier that day, and summoned all her courage.

"Well, I'd rather be a little chubby than a rude, bitter, snarky bitch," Valerie yelled, grabbing her wand and rushing out of the room, as the two girls chased after her. She made her way up to the boy's room, slamming the door as they followed.

"Forget it. James and Sirius would hex us if we touched her," Violet said.

"Stupid of them. We're so much prettier, anyways," Alicia agreed.

Valerie was panting heavily, leaning up against the door, her own words ringing in her ears. After nearly three months, she'd done it. She stood up to them.

"Val, are you okay?" James asked, noticing her puffy face, which was now red from running to their room.

"Yeah, Sugar, you look like you've had a good cry."

"You can talk about it if you like,"

"Yeah."

"Sirius, I did it. I finally did it, I stood up to them. They were making fun of me and I couldn't take it, so I told them off!" Valerie exclaimed.

"Wicked!" All four boys exclaimed at once. Sirius rushed up to her, taking her hand.

"What were they getting on you about?" Sirius asked, pulling her down to James' bed with the rest of them.

"Well- I got up on the scale, and they snuck up on me. I gained two or three kilos, and they started teasing me. They-" Valerie cut herself off, but Sirius motioned for her to keep talking. "They said the reason you didn't kiss me back is because I'm fat," she finished. Sirius looked angry, and pulled in his friend for a hug.

"The reason the sod didn't kiss you back is because he was too scared!" James cried.

"You are in no way, fat, Sugar," Sirius assured her. Valerie nodded uneasily, pulling out of Sirius' grasp.

"They were just searching for something else to tease you about, now that your hair looks better than theirs, and they saw your perfectly normal, human growth as an opportunity," Remus eased her. Peter nodded.

"What did you say back?" Peter inquired.

"I believe my exact words were, 'I'd rather be a bit chubby than a rude, bitter, snarky bitch.' My language definitely surprised me. I didn't think I had a cursing bone in my body,"

The boys all laughed, exclaiming things like,

"Oh, that is RICH!"

"Get 'em, Sugar!"

"Well done, then!"

"Perfect!"

"I guess you're all right," Valerie said.

"Oh, we're always right, Sugar. Now come on, I'm taking my very thin best friend to get herself a cupcake, as she needs it," Sirius insisted, pulling her out of the room.

"He'd better kiss her back," James said.

* * *

**November 30th, 1971, the kitchens.**

Valerie and Sirius sat at the same table they had earlier, where Valerie slowly nibbled on a cupcake. She didn't want to eat it, the word "Fat" kept ringing in her ear with each tiny bite she took.

"Val. I really am sorry about this morning. You just shocked me, and I didn't know what to do. However, I do know now," Sirius apologized as he stood up and walked around the table, leaning down to kiss Valerie. Their lips met, and he pushed forward with slightly more pressure than she'd done earlier, and Valerie kissed back, a jolt of electricity going through her. The pair grinned, and Sirius stretched his hand out to help her up.

* * *

**Novemeber 30th, 1971, James, Sirius, Remus, Peter and (unofficially) Val's room.**

The pair made their way back up to their room, forgetting to release each other's hands. Sirius opened the door, and James, Remus, and Peter's eyes immediately went to the pair's locked hands. The three of them grinned, and their hands parted. Valerie looked at them questioningly, standing by the door. Sirius ran over to them, and they all gathered in James' bed, and shut the curtain.

"Sorry, Sugar, private meeting!" Sirius called to her.

"Muffilatio," muttered Remus.

"What happened?" James asked.

"What do you think happened, you git?" Sirius asked.

"You kissed her?" Remus asked.

"No, Remmy, I hugged her very tightly and told her I would kiss her if I wasn't abstinent," Sirius responded dryly.

"That's not what abstinence is, Sirius," Remus explained.

"Oh, come off it! Of course I kissed her! She kissed back, if I may add that. Her lips were very-"

"Sirius, please don't talk about my almost-sister like that. I very much do not want to hear about how her lips felt," James warned.

"So are you going to ask her to be your girlfriend?" Peter asked.

"Valerie has explicitly stated she doesn't wish to have a boyfriend," Sirius answered.

"She might just be playing hard to get," the blonde answered.

"Right you are, friend! I've never heard you utter such great ideas," Sirius praised. The other two boys rolled their eyes, and Remus removed the charm. Sirius flung open the curtains dramatically, greeted by Valerie's stare. She had one eyebrow raised at the four of them, and her eyes were set on Sirius. She looked ready to start yelling, but Sirius stopped her.

"Well, love, my absolutely extravagant, beautiful love-"Sirius started, "I do believe, in light of recent events, it is only proper for me to ask you to be my girlfriend."

"No, thank you."

"What?"

"I said, no, thank you. I don't really want a boyfriend."

"Then why did you kiss me?"

"Because you said you'd never kissed anyone, and neither had I. So I figured it would solve both of our problems."

"That was the first time, Sugar."

"I don't believe the first time counts, as you didn't kiss back."

Sirius exhaled. She had won. She was most certainly not playing hard to get, she simply didn't want a boyfriend.

"Well, Sugar, if you ever change your mind-"

"There are plenty of eligible boys in our year. Or even in second year," She finished with a wink. James went green at the sight. Remus held back laughter at the clear rejection, along with Peter.

"Well, goodnight, Sirius," she said, planting one small kiss on his cheek.

"Goodnight, James," she said, hugging him.

"And goodnight, Remus and Peter," She finished, hugging the both of them at once.

"'Night," three of the four boys returned.

"'Night, Sugar," said the fourth.

Valerie returned to her assigned room that night, not fearing Violet or Alicia.

* * *

**November 30th, 1971, Valerie, Lily, Violet, Alice, and Alicia's room.**

"Well, look who it is," Violet remarked, greeting Valerie.

"If it isn't the girl who didn't get kissed back," Alicia added.

"Where's Lily?" Valerie asked, ignoring them.

"Dunno, probably at the library," Alice answered.

"It doesn't matter, anyways. Spill us the details, VAL-uhrie. How bad did it hurt when Sirius rejected your fat arse?" Violet asked.

"Well, Violet, if you must know, that's not what happened. Sirius likes my fat arse, and in fact, he liked it so much, he told me that when I kissed him he was so enchanted by it, he forgot to kiss me back. So he apologized and kissed me. Yes, on the mouth. Eventually, he asked me to be his girlfriend, but I politely denied. I guess my fat arse got me somewhere, but your nasty comments haven't gotten you anywhere with ANY of them, have they? Especially Remus, Alicia. It's obvious to everyone you like him, but let me be clear that he doesn't feel the same way. Remmy happens to only like girls who are kind. Violet, I hate to say it, but Sirius does not return your crush at all. He prefers a girl with a nice, fat bum," the dark haired girl ranted. The two girls stood there with their mouths open. Valerie giggled.

"Sorry," she said, still laughing at their open jaws.

With that, Valerie slipped under her covers and shut her curtains, knowing she would not have to deal with those arrogant girls for at least the next few days.

Valerie slipped her diary out and wrote down everything that had happened, and her little tirade, down to the last word. She would need to remember it so she could share with Sirius, who would be very, very proud.

* * *

**November 31st, 10:00 pm, Sirius, James, Remus, Peter, and (unofficially) Val's room. Sirius' bed.**

Sirius slowly clapped at what had just been recited to him. "Just beautiful, simply beautiful. Especially the fat bum bit. Violet looks like she weighs about 6 stones. No meat on her. Which as you pointed out, is not within my tastes,"

"Sirius!" Val chided, smacking him on the arm.

"What? It's true. I'm a boy going through puberty, I have wants, and needs, and desi-"

"Stop right there please. You're making me sick," Val joked.

"Aw, but I love teasing you!"

"You can tease me later. Violet and Alicia have been really quiet today, it's starting to scare me," Valerie confessed.

"Aw, that's ok, Sugar. You can stay up here. Don't you usually sleep in James' bed anyways?"

"Not really. I think he believes we're getting too old for it. He'll be twelve soon, too. So I usually sleep on your couch."

"Oh," said Sirius. There was a bit of a pause.

"I feel bad about you sleeping on the couch and all. Want to sleep here?" Sirius offered nervously.

"Sirius.. I know we're close and all, but I've been sleeping in James' bed since I was six. We just met three months ago."

"I didn't mean while I was still in it, Sugar."

"Oh. Well, ok, if you really don't mind being on the couch.."

"If you've endured it several nights, I can do it for one, I think," Sirius assured her.

"Well, alright. Only because you offered."

"Good night, Sugar."

"Good night, Sirius," said Valerie, leaning to give him a hug and a kiss on the cheek, which he gladly returned. Sirius was a bit of a softie when he wasn't around his friends. Sirius grabbed a pillow and a blanket, making his way to the couch, shutting the curtains behind him. When he had gotten all settled on the couch, Valerie sunk in to his bed, wrapping herself in the comforters. Sirius smelled nice, a little musky, but nice. Like the scent of the woods, minus the scat. She inhaled deeply, as the sheets and comforters smelled just like him. Before she fell asleep, she heard someone shouting.

"You're whipped, mate!"

"Go to sleep, James!" Valerie called, defending Sirius. With that, she fell asleep, feeling safe and secure wrapped in Sirius' blankets.

**That's the end for this chapter! Thank you for reading, please give reviews! This chapter took a while to finish. xx, kaylestrange.**


	6. Chapter 5

**Authors note- I'm putting a trigger warning here for bulimia and anorexia. It will be discussed throughout much of the story, so if you don't like it, don't read it.**

**December 3rd, 1971. The Library, 3:00pm. **

* * *

"Rem, where were you the past few days?" Valerie asked her friend when they had finally gotten alone.

"I've been ill," Remus explained.

"That's what you said before you left. You've been out sick for a few days at the end of the month, every month," Valerie persisted.

"Is it really much of your business, Val? I've. Been. Ill," Remus insisted. Valerie was shocked, she'd never heard Remus snap at her like that.

"Jeez, Rem, is it that time of the month?" Valerie asked jokingly. Remus looked at her, his face going pale.

"Rem, you okay? It was just a joke. If you have something you need to tell me, though..." she trailed off, but just as she finished saying that, she felt something warm, and oddly moist in the lower regions of her body.

_Karma! I Call karma. I made a time-of-the-month joke, and at that very moment, comes my time of the month. Mother nature really, really doesn't like me, _Val thought, cursing herself silently. The dark haired girl looked up at Remus, who suddenly looked very sick, and very disturbed. She looked down self consciously, wondering if she had a stain. Nothing. What was grossing him out so bad? She knew it smelled, but only to her. Only she could smell it when she was naked, right? Right? She inhaled deeply, smelling nothing but Chanel No. 19, her own perfume. If there was one thing her mother knew about the muggle world, it was all things expensive. Her mother loved buying her expensive things to excuse herself whenever she hit or yelled at her daughter.

"I-I've got to go, Val. Finish that potions essay," he excused himself.

"Ok. Bye, then, Remus," she said, collecting her things, but he was already gone. Valerie made her way up to her own room, where Lily was sitting on her bed, eating chocolate. Valerie quickly scanned the room, searching for Violet and Alicia, but they weren't there.

"Lily, do I smell?" she asked abruptly.

"Of what?"

"Period blood," Valerie said bluntly.

"Why would you ask such a thing?"

"I felt it come just when I was sitting next to Remus, and he looked like he had to vomit! I swear, he was holding his breath even. I don't get it, I smell like my perfume, I'm pretty sure," she said, walking next to her friend. Lily leaned close to Valerie, inhaling.

"You smell like your Chanel perfume. I used it this morning, by the way," Lily answered. Valerie nodded.

"Well, whatever. He probably just.. remembered something important. Hey, where was that book you had on werewolves? Professor Kettleburn set us an essay on them," Valerie asked.

"How did you even get in that class? It's only for third years and above," Lily questioned.

"Oh, my mum wrote a whole letter to Dumbledore about how I needed the class and would excel in it, how I could benefit from it. I have to keep my grades above perfect, or else they'll give me the boot," Valerie explained. Lily nodded, handing her the book.

Valerie opened the book, turning to the page she needed, but quickly flipping back when she noticed something that caught her eye. A section titled, "How to Tell if Somebody You Know Is A Werewolf". She laughed, _yeah, right, werewolves at Hogwarts. Real believable, _she thought. However, curiosity got the best of her, and she began reading the section.

**How To Tell If Somebody You Know Is A Werewolf:**

**1. They've gone missing towards the end of the month/full moons.**

**2. They seem uncomfortable for no apparent reason**

**3. They excuse their disappearances with being ill, or visiting a family member/friend.**

Valerie re-read the page at least three times, as each of these signs seemed to describe Remus perfectly. She flipped to the next page, which was titled, "Werewolf Abilities in Human Form". She read the page, wondering if she was just being a bit too nosy, and maybe Remus really was ill.

**Werewolf Abilities in Human Form:**

**Werewolves may use some of their abilities while human, especially just before and after the full moon. One of these abilities is a heightened sense of smell, something very prominent while in their wolf form. A werewolf, while in human form, may smell fear or lust, and any particularly displeasing scent. During the mating season, in the late fall to early winter, a werewolf ages 11 and up may begin to smell a menstruating female, a sign to avoid them for mating, as they are the least fertile at the time. **

Valerie snapped the book shut, as that was all she needed to read. Everything suddenly clicked in to place. Remus John Lupin, her friend, was a werewolf. What was she to do with this news? At that very moment, she remembered her own little problem, which had caused this whole debacle, and made way to the bathroom to clean up. She pointed her wand at the soiled sheets, cleaning and removing the stain. She picked up her Chanel perfume, giving herself an extra spritz, as not to make Remus uncomfortable, however he should've been better, now that she'd sorted out the situation. She nearly flew to the boy's dormitory, her bag with her, where Remus sat alone in his bed. Valerie locked the door, casting an unbreakable lock on it with her wand. She looked at Remus, who looked very, very uncomfortable that they were alone.

"Valerie, if you've come to interrogate me, you're invited to leave," said Remus. Valerie muttered a quick silencing charm at the door, so nobody could hear them.

"I'm not here to interrogate. I'm here to confront. I know your secret, Remus," she said, as Remus turned pale. "I'm upset that you lied to me. I directly asked you why you left, and you lied. I was reading a book on werewolves for Care Of Magical Creatures, and it gave signs on how to spot a werewolf."

"That doesn't mean a thing."

"Still lying? That wasn't what made it click, Rem. I didn't want to have to embarrass you, but I figured it out when the book mentioned a werewolf your age could smell menstrual blood. That was when it clicked. You smelled my period in the library this afternoon, and you held your breath and went all pale, then you ran away," Valerie retorted. With that, Remus burst in to tears.

"I'm so sorry, Val. I get it if you don't want to be friends," he apologized.

"No, no no no no! Don't cry, please," Valerie pleaded, rushing to sit on her friends bed, hugging him tightly.

"I'll always be your friend, Rem. I don't care if you're a werewolf or not. I don't care if your a werewolf, a unicorn, whatever it may be. You're the same to me," she said quietly.

"Really?" Remus choked out through his cries.

"Of course. Now stop crying, you're going to make me cry too," warned Valerie, a single tear sliding down her cheek.

"You can't tell anyone. Not even James," said Remus.

"If that's what you want, Rem, as long as you know they'd feel the same way that I do. I'm only not telling them because they'll figure it out eventually," agreed Valerie, sniffling. Remus had finished crying, and the other three boys would be up there any minute, so Valerie pointed her wand at Remus and muttered a spell. His face was no longer red, and Valerie didn't truly need the spell, as she had only shed a tear or two. She removed the silencing and locking charms from the door, and got off Remus' bed, making her way to Sirius' when she heard the three of them bounding up the steps. She sprawled herself across the bed and loosened her tie, kicking off her shoes and shutting her eyes. The door opened, the three boys laughing, and Sirius made his way to his bed to find it occupied.

"Why are you in my bed?"

"I'm waiting for you to ravish me," responded Valerie, her eyes still shut.

Sirius chuckled and pushed her to the side, so she wasn't completely in the middle of the bed. Sirius slipped under the covers next to her, receiving a whistle from James.

"Should I leave?" James asked jokingly. Valerie got up to shut the curtains, and then slipped under the blanket with Sirius. She shuffled the blankets around, unzipped her skirt, and zipped it again, leaving room for pauses, of course.

"OH GODS SIRIUS," yelled Valerie, trying to hold back laughter. Sirius shot up, looking at her with a grin.

"I'm going to rock your world, Sugar," Sirius said enthusiastically, flipping his comic as silently as possible. Valerie let out a gentle moan, which was, looking back, a bit too over the top. So over the top in fact, that Remus, James, and Peter left the room.

"Oops. Too much?" Valerie said, laughing.

"Just a bit, Sugar," Sirius replied, laughing with her. The pair stayed there, laughing for a bit, until it hit Valerie.

"We're alone, in your bed, Sirius. We just pretended to have sex to gross out our friends. This is a bit inappropriate."

"Whatever. It's not like we're doing anything," Sirius dismissed.

"Now you decide to be reasonable," Valerie muttered. Sirius looked offended.

"What, are you on the rag, woman?" muttered Sirius. Valerie huffed, going bright red in both anger and embarrassment.

"Oh, I guess you are. Sorry," Sirius said quietly. Valerie rolled over, her arm draped over Sirius. She snuggled herself in the crook of his neck while he flipped through his comic.

"Asked a girl what she wanted to be, she said baby, can't you see? I wanna be famous, a star to scream, but you can do somethin', in-be-tween, baby you can drive my car!" Val started.

"Yes I wanna be a star!" Sirius sang back horribly.

"Baby you can drive my car!" They sang at once.

"And maybe I love you!" They chorused.

"I told a girl, that my prospects were good!" Val sang. They kept taking turns, with Sirius next.

"And she said baby, it's understood!"

"Working for peanuts, is all very fine!"

"But I can show you a better time!"

"Baby you can drive my car!"

"Yes I'm gonna be a star!"

"Baby you can drive my car!"

"And maybe I love you!"

"Beep beep, beep beep, yeah!" They finished together.

"You're such an awful singer, honestly," Valerie said, laughing.

"If you hadn't gotten all these muggle songs stuck in my head, I wouldn't be singing at all," Sirius reminded her.

"I suppose," she settled.

"My mother told me I couldn't sing once," Valerie shared. Sirius looked at her incredulously.

"Does your mum need hearing aides?" asked Sirius. Valerie shook her head.

"I called her a liar when she said it. She punched me. I had a black eye, that one was difficult to explain to James," said Valerie. Sirius just looked at her with wide eyes.

"My dad gave me a black eye once, when I told him I didn't care about people's blood purity," said Sirius. Valerie hugged him, still pressed against him.

"I take it you're staying here for Christmas hols?" Sirius asked.

"Maybe. I might go to the Potters, but my mum would probably see me. She likes to give me fancy gifts at Christmas. That's what she does, she hits me and gives me nice things to make up for it," Valerie explained, a tear rolling down her cheek and on to Sirius' shoulder. With one tear, a whole river came. Tears puddled, wetting her friends hair. Sirius sat the both of them up, hugging her.

"Listen, Sugar, forget her. My mum is just the same," he consoled her. "Forget about her, you had a lot of people who love you."

"Oh, please, like who?"

"Me, James, Remus, the whole of Hogwarts? Minus Slytherins, Violet, and Alicia?"

"You said you loved me," Valerie pointed out, her eyes glittering.

"We're best friends, we have to love each other, especially when we feel like nobody else does."

"You know, Sirius, around everyone else, you're a immature, arrogant git. But you're different with me."

"I could say just the same about you, Sugar."

* * *

**December 10th, 1971. 12 pm. The Great Hall.**

"Sure you want to eat that, Valley?" a snarky sounding voice whispered in to her ear, passing by her. Valerie didn't even need to look to know it was Violet. Sure, the teasing about Sirius had stopped, but they were relentless about her appearance. Valerie simply smiled and attempted to take another bite of the sandwich, but she gave up and reached to grab a few carrots and grapes, just enough to fit in the palm of her hands, before she dashed up the stairs to the boys room to finish her lunch. She knew she'd given Violet the satisfaction, but she didn't care. She wanted to get rid of the weight she'd gained. Valerie had only taken a couple small bites of her sandwich, so she wasn't eating very much. She sat on Sirius' bed in silence, munching the fruits and vegetables. When she'd finished, she walked over to the bathroom, as she'd stuffed the girls bathroom scale in the boys' room. Valerie stepped on to the scale, waiting to see how much she'd lost. None at all. She weighed the same.

_I shouldn't have eaten at all, _she thought. She peered at the toilet, kneeling down in front of it. Once she'd faked sick by sticking her fingers down her throat to get out of a shopping trip with her mother. Perhaps, if she got rid of what she'd just eaten, it wouldn't add anything to her weight. She pushed up her sleeves and used one hand to pull back her hair. She stuck two fingers down her throat, triggering her gag reflex. When nothing happened, she tried again, and succeeded. She looked in to the toilet, at first disgusted by the taste and the smell of what she'd done. She didn't notice the door opening, so she almost shrieked when she heard Sirius stomp in to the bathroom.

"What, you get sick?" he questioned, not having fully entered. When he did, however, he fit everything together pretty quickly. She was kneeled in front of the loo, two of her fingers wet, with a few pieces of who-knows-what on them, and her other hand was holding her hair back. He walked closer, looking at the sick in the toilet before looking away, as not to get himself sick.

"Valerie, did you just make yourself sick?" Sirius asked. Valerie shuddered at the use of her full name. Even when he called her by her name, it was always Val, never Valerie.

"Er... yeah. I really don't want to go to Care Of Magical Creatures today," she lied.

"That's a lie. You love Care Of Magical Creatures. Tell me why you did this, right now," Sirius pestered, despite knowing the answer. Valerie got up, flushing the loo with her clean hand and rinsing off the dirty one. Sirius was still standing in front of her.

"You felt guilty about eating, didn't you? What did Violet say?" Sirius asked. Valerie shook her head, unable to speak. She picked up her tooth brush, and began brushing away.

"Don't want to talk, huh?" Sirius pestered, an angry look on his face.

"That's it. Today you make yourself sick, and sometimes you skip eating at all! I'll be walking you to and from your meals from now on to make sure you eat. I don't care if I have to stuff the food down your throat myself, honestly."

"I can think of better things to stuff down my throat."

"Mind out of the gutter, Sugar. I'm serious!"

"You're always Sirius."

_"VALERIE HARMONY LOPEZ!"_

Valerie whipped her head around, looking at Sirius in shock. That was the first time she'd ever even heard him acknowledge that she had a last name, let alone a middle. Sirius' face was red with anger, and Valerie's face showed little emotion, until it sunk, and she threw herself at the onyx-haired boy, sobbing.

"I'm sorry. I'm sorry! Do whatever you want, Sirius, just help me. I can't even look at my reflection without feeling angry and sad, and horrified. I'm never not focused on what I look like. I almost got kicked out of Charms for fixing my hair in a hand mirror during a lecture!"

"Let's start by hexing Violet in to next week, so that she's the one worrying about her appearance, hmm?"

"I said do whatever you want."

Sirius grinned.

* * *

**December 11th, 1972. 12 pm. The Great Hall.**

Unknowingly, Violet sipped her pumpkin juice, savoring the taste. For some reason, it tasted better than usual. She shrieked as soon as she finished, and yellow pimples started forming on her hands. Everybody swiveled their heads to look at her, laughing at the pimples, which were now appearing on her face. Violet screamed again, running out of the great hall.

"Brilliant," Valerie said, whispering to the grey-eyed boy next to her. "Potion or hex?"

"Hex. It would just go off the next time she drank something."

"Beautiful. Just beautiful," Valerie said, clapping. She smiled, her plate full, until Sirius grabbed her sandwich and stuck it in her mouth, forcing her to take a bite.

"Good girl," Sirius praised.

"I'm not your puppy, Sirius," she said agitatedly.

"Funny, because puppies just sit at the table waiting to be fed."

Valerie frowned and grabbed the sandwich from Sirius, taking a bite of her own. Sirius smiled genuinely at her. "I'm proud," he mouthed. Valerie smiled, she never wanted to disappoint Sirius again, because the way his eyes lit up when he did that were just too perfect. She took another bite of that damn sandwich, any thoughts of Violet fading.


	7. Chapter 6

**WARNING: THIS CHAPTER IS GAY. I'M SIRIUS HERE. TWO BOYS KISS. ALSO INNUENDOS LIKE USUAL. **

**December 12th, 1971. 4 pm. The Library.**

* * *

Valerie was making her way to the library through the crowded hallways to meet Remus, happy to get some time away from Sirius and James. They'd been staring at her and whispering, clearly about her. She lost her train of thought when somebody bumped in to her, sending her books to the ground and out of her bag.

"Sorry, Valerie," a tall, redheaded boy apologized to her. She immediately recognized him as Fabian Prewett, a third year. She had Care of Magical Creatures with him, but they'd never spoken. She'd still done a lot of admiring from afar, however. He wasn't a big prankster like her friends or anything, but he certainly had moments of causing trouble with his twin, Gideon. She remembered yesterday, how he'd winked at her when Professor Kettleburn announced she got the highest grade in the class on her werewolf essay. Fabian crouched down, picking up her books for her and handing them to her.

"Oh, it's fine. Thank you, for, you know. Helping me and all," said Valerie, who found herself unusually nervous. Fabian nodded, saluted, and started to walk away.

"Wait," Valerie called. He turned back, smiling at her.

"Yes?"

"Where are you headed to? Just out of curiosity, you know," Valerie asked, surprising herself.

"Just off to the library, what about you?"

"Oh, me too, actually. I was going to meet a friend."

"I see. Care to accompany me? Maybe I can meet your friend," Fabian offered. Valerie smiled as he set his arm over her shoulders, walking her to the library.

Remus grinned as he saw Valerie with one of the Prewett twins arm over her shoulder. They walked up to the table where Remus was sitting, smiling.

"Hey Rem. This is Fabian," Val introduced the pair.

"Yeah, I've seen you and Gideon around," said Remus.

"Same here," Fabian said.

"You've seen yourself and Gideon around?" Valerie teased.

"Oh, you know what I meant," said Fabian.

"So, is it alright if Fabian sits with us? I mean, only if he wants to, of course," said Valerie, trying not to sound pushy.

"Sure," the two said in unison.

"Did you see Violet today? I saw her sitting in Madame Pomfrey's, trying to get a cure for all of those pimples," Fabian started. "That's one hex. It was pretty funny, too."

"I may or may not have been slightly responsible for that," Valerie said sheepishly. Fabian beamed at her.

"Really?" he asked excitedly.

"I can't take the credit, honestly, it was my friend Sirius who carried the whole thing out. I just made him want to do it."

Remus rolled his eyes, he could see he wasn't going to get a word in with her.

"I've actually got to run off to the loo really quick. You play nice, Remus," said Valerie, whispering the last part. With Valerie gone, and her bag left behind, Remus knew it was time to strike.

"Hey, Fabian, look over there!" Remus said excitedly.

"Where?"

"Accio Diary," Remus whispered.

"Oh, it must've disappeared," Remus said, trying to sound disappointed. Fabian looked confused, but he eventually shook his head, dismissing the event.

"So, Remu-"

"Look, Valerie's back! I just remembered, I have something to attend to," Remus excused himself, running away and to his dormitory as quickly as possible, the diary in his pants pocket. It was a tiny thing, he figured Valerie had a shrink charm on it. He slammed the door behind him, locking it. It would only slow Valerie down once she realized what had happened, but any extra time would be needed.

"I got it."

"No," Peter doubted.

"Impossible," James insisted.

"Really?" Sirius asked, grinning. Remus slipped the tiny diary out of his pocket, holding it up triumphantly.

"YEAAAAAH, GO REMUS!" Sirius cheered enthusiastically. Sirius ran up to Remus, squeezing him in a tight hug before grabbing the diary and enlarging it. "You, friend, are a true prankster at heart. I knew you had it in you, mate," he praised. Sirius sat in his bed, shutting the curtains and popping a crisp in his mouth. This should be good. He'd know exactly how she felt about him

_Why do I want to know this? _Sirius thought.

_Endless teasing. Definitely. That's why. _Sirius opened it to the most recent entry.

_December 11th, 1971_

_Today was pretty hectic. We all got back our werewolf essays, which were pretty easy (but I guess I did have a bit of an inside source), and I actually got the highest mark in the class. When Professor Kettleburn announced it, Fabian winked at me. Gods, I nearly melted right there. I think everyone knows he's the better looking twin. On a heavier note, Sirius found me making myself sick yesterday and freaked out. He's even been walking me to and from all of my meals. It's actually kind of cute that he's concerned, but still annoying. Everyone here knows I'm fat. He makes me take a bite once in a while, but I spit it in to my cup or my napkin. Sometimes I bite it myself just to get the taste and spit it out. It's gross, but it'll be worth it once I'm skinny. Skinny, and beautiful. _

_I̶ ̶w̶a̶n̶t̶ ̶S̶i̶r̶i̶u̶s̶ ̶t̶o̶ ̶pe̶ne̶t̶r̶a̶t̶e̶ ̶m̶e̶ _

_For the record, in case I read that in ten years, Lily wrote that. Yes, innocent Lily Evans. _

_N̶o̶,̶ ̶s̶h̶e̶ ̶d̶i̶d̶ ̶n̶o̶t̶.̶ _

_I've moved to the bathroom to avoid the surprisingly scandalous Lily Evans._

___̶H̶e̶ ̶c̶o̶u̶l̶d̶ ̶p̶u̶t̶ ̶i̶t̶ ̶u̶p̶ ̶m̶y̶ ̶b̶u̶m̶,̶ ̶t̶o̶o̶ _

_I forgot the scandalous Lily Evans is a witch, and can open the door with magic if she pleases. I'm letting her have my way with my diary now._

_Valerie, I'm writing this here for your own good. You. Love. Sirius. I don't care if you have the hots for Fabian Prewett at the moment, Sirius is your one true love. Let's not deny that you have more than a little crush on him. I'm only writing this here so when you two finally get together, you can look back on this and laugh. _

_Love, your scandalous redhead, Lily Evans._

_I could kill Lily._

-_Valerie Lopez_

Sirius snapped the diary shut, his eyes wide. He shrunk it and rest his head on the pillow, and less than a minute later, the door swung open.

"REMUS JOHN LUPIN, YOU TREACHEROUS, EVIL LITTLE PRAT! I KNOW WHAT YOU DID!"

"Where is it. Where is my diary? You had better- wait a second."

The curtain to Sirius' bed flew open, and Valerie looked as if she were about to scream, her face red and puffy. Sirius didn't need to ask why she was crying.

"I'm sorry, Val. We need to talk. Can you meet me at the astronomy tower tomorrow night?" Sirius asked. Valerie shook her head.

"I'm meeting Fabian Prewett there tomorrow night."

With that, the other three boys left, and Sirius looked as if he were about to burst.

"Why?" he asked as calmly as possible.

"He told me he liked me a lot and wanted to get to know me better. We have a date."

"A date? He's a third year!" Sirius yelled.

"He's only thirteen, and I'm twelve. It's not a crime, Sirius. I wish you weren't so jealous all the time," Valerie defended herself. Sirius was fuming. There he was, with genuine concern for his friend, and she blows him off for Fabian bloody Prewett!

"Don't look so angry! You took _my _diary, yes, you, not Remus. I know you assigned him to do it for you so he could take the blame. I'm not daft. You take my diary, you don't like what you read, and then you get mad when I tell you I have a date on the day you want to talk to me about something you're _NOT EVEN SUPPOSED TO KNOW ABOUT? SOMETHING YOU WOULDN'T KNOW IF YOU HADN'T STOLEN AND LIED?_"

Valerie was fuming, her face red. Sirius had completely invaded her privacy, and she knew he was mad about her starving herself. She didn't care.

"I wish I'd never even spoken to you on that bloody train. Apparently, my being friendly with you just entitles you to me. I'm just a little shiny trophy for you, your little toy. You even called me your puppy," Valerie spat. Sirius went pale, and all of the life drained from his face. He looked emotionless.

Valerie stormed out of the room crying, using her sleeves to dry her tears. She made her way down to the common room, where James was sitting with Sirius' comic in his hand. James looked up at her, seeing her red, puffy face. Valerie simply plopped herself next to him, draping her arms around his neck, sobbing in to his sweater. She didn't care that the whole Gryffindor common room could see her, she was sure the whole school had heard their row. She hadn't truly cried like this since the first time her mother had hit her. It had happened on that day when she snuck off to James' house after she'd gotten yelled at for sneaking him in to her own house. Sirius walked in to the common room, sitting on another one of the chairs. Just then, Violet came and sat next to him, most likely flirting, as she was smiling. Sirius didn't appear very amused, but he kept talking to her. Valerie sobbed harder, as she had called Sirius jealous, but that was exactly how she felt.

"Th- thank you, James," Valerie managed to choke out through her cries. She got up and made her way to the bathroom in her dormitory, washing her face. She pulled her straightened hair out of it's ponytail, letting the hair frame her face. She didn't dare to look in the mirror or step on the scale. Valerie made her way down the stairs, hoping to escape to the library. She looked at her watch, frowning. It was already 5 pm. She had left Fabian in the library at 4:30, so she didn't think Fabian would still be there. Just her luck, he was. She sighed, making her way to sit next to him.

"Hey," she said quietly.

"Hello," he responded. "You look like you've had a good cry," he said, his eyebrows furrowing with concern.

"Yeah. Just um, had a row with Sirius," said Valerie.

"Want to talk about it?"

"Well, he read my diary, the git, and he saw some things he didn't like, and said I needed to discuss them with him at the astronomy tower tomorrow. I told him I had something with you, and he freaked out. He got really jealous, and I ended up screaming at him and just saying horrible things," she explained.

"What did you say?" Fabian asked curiously.

"Well, I think what really hurt him was when I said I wished I'd never met him in the first place."

"Ouch."

"It was ruthless. I was ready to say anything to hurt him."

"Why?"

"I dunno, I just wanted him to feel how I felt."

"And how did you feel?"

"Betrayed."

Fabian nodded, taking her hand and holding it in his own.

"You ask me a lot of questions," Valerie pointed out.

"More for your benefit than mine, love. I just wanted you to realize how you felt," answered Fabian. Valerie smiled.

"I think I need to leave Sirius alone for a while. We both need to calm down, and I don't know if I can even look at him right now. He had one of his friends take my diary and he read it. I just couldn't believe it. He never told me why he did it, he never apologized. I just feel like going up there and hexing him in to oblivion, but at the same time I want to apologize."

"The best thing you can do is wait a bit, and then just do what you think is right. I wouldn't hex him until you make up, if I were you," Fabian advised.

"Thank you. For the advice, I mean."

Fabian nodded, squeezing her hand gently.

"You should stay here and read for a bit. I'm just doing some research for an idea Gideon had. We're going to try making some trick sweets," said Fabian. Valerie nodded, smiling. She picked up her book about love potions, which she had picked up for no other reason than it seemed interesting. She came across an interesting potion- one to make somebody fall in love with an object. She grinned maliciously, shaking Fabian's arm and pointing to the page.

"You wouldn't," he challenged.

"Oh yes, I would. I know just the object to make him become attached to, as well."

"What would that be?"

"Remus' wand."

"You know you have to get a sample of it, right? There's no way Remus is going to let you get a skin cell of his-"

"Mind out of the gutter, please! I meant the one he uses for spells and such. Boys are so filthy minded," Valerie interrupted.

"Oh. Well, yes, I suppose Remus would probably let you get a little shaving of _that _wand."

"Wait just a minute. I'm brilliant. You're brilliant. We're so brilliant! You just gave me the most beautiful idea. Now, where can I find a temporary love potion? As in, the type to make a human fall in love with another human," said Valerie, beaming with excitement.

"Poor Remus."

"Poor Sirius! Every student here is going to believe he's a poofter!" Valerie said cheerily. "Oh Fabian, you just have to help me. I can't brew this potion myself, Remus and I are both terrible at potions, although I doubt he'd help me anyways. Peter can't do it. James would run off and tell Sirius. That leaves me with nobody but you, or Lily, who would never agree to it," she deliberated.

"Well, alright. If this ends badly, I am in no way responsible," he agreed.

The pair ran up the stairs in to the boys dormitory, gathering what they needed. Valerie plucked one of Sirius' hairs out of his brush, carefully wrapping it in a pink tissue. She did the same with Remus' brush, but with a blue tissue instead. They ventured down to the potions lab, settling themselves at one of the cauldrons.

"Alright, let's see, first I'll need Ashwinder eggs," Valerie directed. Fabian handed them to her as she dropped them in the cauldron, next adding rose thorns.

"Hand me the hair wrapped in the blue tissue."

Valerie added it to the cauldron, along with peppermint.

"Powdered moonstone!"

"Water!"

She heated the cauldron at a high heat, watching it bubble. When it began to boil, she turned off the heat, and a puff of pink smoke clouded above it.

"Perfect," praised Fabian.

"Indeed," she replied, pouring the cooled liquid in to a small vial. Now all that was left to apologize to Sirius and wait.

"It's five minutes to six. I had better go make amends with Sirius," Valerie said.

"I'll stay and clean up. I'll be done by dinner. I'd like to see this myself. How long will it last?"

"About an hour. It may last longer, depending on the attractiveness of Remus and the weight of Sirius. He doesn't weigh much, and we have plenty. It should taste just like water, so we'll be fine to give him about half of the vial," she said with a smile. She left, waving goodbye to Fabian, and looking for Sirius. He was sitting in the same place in the common room, so Valerie had the perfect opportunity.

"Sirius," she called, making her way over to him.

"I'm sorry," they both said at once. Valerie threw her arms around him, feeling the potion slide in her sleeve. They embraced, and stayed there until someone started giggling. They broke apart, and grasped each others hands, making their way to the Great Hall. They sat in their usual seats, and Valerie waited for everyone to pile in. Valerie winked at Fabian when he arrived, signaling him to distract Sirius. The two began to talk about the quidditch match yesterday, and Valerie spilled half of the vial in to his golden goblet while he wasn't looking. Everyone else was having their own conversations, so nobody really noticed.

"Gods, I'm parched," Sirius complained. He picked up the goblet, chugging it all down at once. Valerie's eyes went wide. _You were supposed to sip that potion slowly, _she thought. Now Sirius would feel the effects almost immediately.

"Rem. Remmy," Sirius called, trying to drive Remus' attention away from his book. Remus looked up at him, clearly annoyed at his book being interrupted.

"Yes, Sirius?"

"I think I'm in love with you."

The whole Gryffindor table spun their heads to look at Sirius, who had said that perfectly audibly.

"Wh-what did you just say?"

"I'm a bloody poofter, Remus! I'm in love with you!"

"A what?"

"Gay. Homosexual. Shirt-lifter. Giant poof. Butt pounder," Sirius rattled off different words for liking blokes, much to the surprise and embarrassment of one Remus Lupin. Valerie and Fabian looked at each other, grinning.

"For me?" Remus asked quietly.

"Yes, you, you handsome git! I'm in love with you, and I want to snog you!" Sirius declared. Remus went bright red, and everyone else laughed. A few people looked disgusted.

"Sirius, I can't let you do that. I'm not gay," Remus said bluntly.

"You don't have to be gay, Rem. You can be bisexual, pansexual, whatever! Just come and snog me. Right now," Sirius demanded. The love potion, combined with Sirius' already dramatic personality, was giving more than the desired effect. Sirius abandoned his food, grabbing Remus by the tie and pulling him to their dormitory. Valerie grinned, following them. The three walked in to the room, Remus still stuttering and babbling about how he didn't think that this was a good idea. Valerie plopped on the couch, watching. The other two boys barely noticed her.

"We don't have to snog, Remmy. Please, just one little kiss. One peck on the lips, I'll be so happy. I won't ask you for anything else," Sirius begged.

"One kiss? Then you promise to shut it?"

Sirius nodded. Valerie grinned. Was this really about to happen?

Sirius leaned forward, pressing his lips on Remus'. Remus kissed back, looking thoroughly embarrassed. They pulled apart, and Sirius immediately started clapping giddily.

"Oh thank you Remus, that was so amazing! You have perfect lips, I'm so smitten by you," Sirius praised him.

"That's nice, Sirius. Do you know what I could really use?" Remus asked. Sirius made an inappropriate gesture. Remus shook his head.

"I was actually hoping you'd go down-"

"Gladly!"

Valerie sniggered.

"To the great hall to get me my dinner, which you so rudely interrupted me from."

"Sorry, Remmy."

"Get mine too, ya poofter," Valerie requested. Sirius rolled his eyes at her.

"Why would I do that?"

"Sirius, get her plate too," Remus demanded. Sirius immediately ran off, closing the door behind him.

"Valerie. Why, on God's green earth, did you give Sirius a love potion?"

"Well, first I thought it would be funny. Second, I think you deserve to be punished as well. You're the one who nicked the diary for him in the first place," Valerie explained.

"Sirius just made me kiss him. Everybody thinks that we're poofs!"

"Well, Rem, you didn't really have to kiss him. You could've said that what would make you happiest is if he buggered off. You chose to kiss him, really," said Valerie. Remus groaned, because she was right. Remus just didn't think quickly on his feet. He liked to plan things out.

"Don't kiss him again, or else I'll make the potion with his hair this time and feed it to you," she threatened. Remus smiled at her little infatuation.

"I wouldn't dream of it, honestly. I just wanted to tell you, James and I read the rest of your diary. I know, it was wrong, but Sirius told us he read some things that really scared him. We had Dumbledore owl the ministry about your mother, Valerie."

Valerie went pale, feeling as if her whole world were about to fall apart. Her mother. Her mother, who was supposed to love her.

"Why?"

"She hits you, Valerie. Some parents hit their kids, but she takes it to a different level."

"No she doesn't. She's my mom, she loves me."

"She sure has a funny way of showing it."

"What's going to happen to her?"

"There will most likely be a child abuse investigation, and consequence wise, if the ministry decides that your mum is guilty, she'll either lose custody of you, and you'll live somewhere else, or she'll lose custody and get sent to Azkaban."

Sirius strode back in to the room, carrying a plate piled with food in one hand, and another plate with a normal amount of food. Sirius handed the regular serving and one fork to Valerie, while handing the plate with more food, and two forks to Remus.

"Two forks?"

"Well, Remmy, love, I couldn't carry three plates, so I figured we could share!" said Sirius excitedly. Remus sighed, giving in silently.

"Azkaban?" Valerie asked, still frozen.

"Who?" Sirius inquired with a full mouth.

"Valerie's mum might get sent to Azkaban."

"Where will she stay?"

"We don't know yet. The Potters are an option, but if she doesn't go to Azkaban, then she'll be way too close to Valerie. I considered asking my parents, but we don't have a bedroom for her. That leaves Peter's house, but I don't think Val would be comfortable there. Your house obviously isn't an option, as your parents wouldn't dare allow a half blood in their house," Remus explained.

"What about my cousin Andromeda? She just bought a house with her husband, Ted, last year. They have a pretty big house, and Ted is muggle-born."

"Why don't you owl her?" Remus asked.

"And say what? That your friend's getting taken away from her own mother and she needs a new house? I don't even know Andromeda," Valerie pointed out.

"You can meet her this summer. She loves kids, I remember she used to babysit me before she got blasted off the family tree," Sirius recalled.

"My mom's not guilty of anything. She loves me," Valerie insisted.

"A black eye isn't love," said Sirius, who had his arm around Remus.

"You're just a little love expert, aren't you?" Valerie inquired.

"Sirius, go write that owl."

"Yes, love!"

Valerie rolled her eyes as Sirius produced a quill and parchment faster than she'd ever seen. She hoped the potion really did last only an hour. It had already been ten minutes, and she wasn't sure if she could last another fifty.

* * *

**That's it for this chapter, guys. As a wolfstar shipper this part was amazing to write, but the potion will wear off eventually, and Sirius Black will go back to being straighter than a wooden ruler.**


	8. Chapter 7

**Sorry for the lack of updates. It's been a week. Vacation combined with writers block has been keeping me from writing. Please review! It means a lot to me to get your feedback. T****o get you guys to leave me some comments, I offer a question of the day: What's your otp (one true pairing)? Oh, last thing, I'm cutting down on the innuendos. This is gonna be a long story, so I'm putting them in my pocket and saving them for when I really need them.**

**disclaimer: I really don't own these characters. Like, trust me. If I did Sirius, Fred, Hedwig, and Remus would be alive. I don't really care about Tonks though. She sunk my ship. She sunk all my ships. **

**December 12th, 1971**

* * *

"I don't know whether to be angry or amused," Remus pondered as Sirius snored in his lap. The pair were sitting on the couch, and it was only one minute to seven. The potion would wear off in one minute, and the book said the taker would fall asleep before it could wear off, then promptly wake up when it fully left their system. So Sirius would wake up in Remus' lap, and of course, like any other love potion, he would remember exactly what he'd done while under it's influence.

"He looks cute when he sleeps," Valerie thought aloud. Remus chuckled.

"I'm sure Fabian wouldn't like to hear you say that," he warned.

"I didn't say anything."

"Yes, you did. You said Sirius looks cute when he sleeps."

"REMUS!" Sirius yelled as he awoke. He moves away from his friends lap and sat next to Valerie.

"I know I look adorable when I sleep, you don't need to tell me!"

"Valerie said it, I was just repeating what she said. Apparently she thought that she hadn't said it out loud," Remus explained. He picked up his book and left to the common room, since now he didn't have a sleeping Sirius holding him down.

"Sugar, I can't believe you. Honestly, the whole school thinks I'm a shirt-lifter now!"

"Are you mad at me? It was just a prank."

"Mad? Of course not! That was brilliant," he praised, tossing his arm around her. "However, I am definitely embarrassed. I probably won't be able to look at Remus the same for at least a few weeks," said Sirius. Valerie laughed, tossing her arms around Sirius.

"I think I knew you'd feel that way. I really am sorry for what I said, Sirius. I can't imagine what my life would even be like if I hadn't met you. I'd probably be spending all my time with Lily and Snivelly," she pondered.

"I know it was wrong of me to invade your privacy the way I did. I am, however, glad we could get you some help. You can't stay with your mom," he said, muttering the last part quietly. Valerie buried her head in Sirius' sweater, not responding. She was still hugging him tightly, and at the mention of her mother she didn't want to let go.

"I'm not going to have anywhere to go," Valerie whispered.

"You'll be okay. I'm sure Andromeda would love to have you," Sirius assured her.

"If you say so."

"Look, there's Bull right now," said Sirius, pointing to the deep brown owl. He removed the letter from his beak, unrolling the parchment.

_Sirius,_

_I'd love to let your friend stay here, if need be. It's sweet how much you care for her. I can come pick you both up at the train station for Christmas holiday. Just send your parents letter saying you're spending the holidays with the Potters. They're purebloods, and your parents know it. Send something back soon, alright? Not just about this whole thing, tell me how you've been. I miss you._

_- Andromeda Tonks_

"She says she'd love to have you, and you can stay with her for the Christmas holiday if you like," he said. "I'll be there too," he added, reassuring her nervous face.

"Okay, if you think that's a good idea," Valerie agreed. A knock came at the door, and they both knew something was wrong. Peter, James and Remus wouldn't knock, they'd just stride right in.

"Come in," Sirius called. The door creaked open, and in came a man with a long, white beard and sparkling blue eyes.

"Is anything wrong?" Valerie asked immediately.

"Yes, but it appears I am interrupting something," Dumbledore replied, glancing at Sirius' arm around Valerie's shoulder, and her arms around him.

"Oh, no, nothing at all," Valerie replied, removing herself from Sirius.

"I've come to speak to you about your mother, Valerie. I assume you know that we've owled the ministry?"

Valerie nodded, unsure of what he would say next.

"I don't typically enter students dormitories, but this is an urgent matter. The ministry arrived at your mothers estate immediately. She confessed to everything. They've destroyed her wand, and she's being held in Azkaban until her trial. They do not wish to give her one, but it is the law," said Dumbledore. Valerie went pale, a single tear rolling down her cheek.

"Arrangements for your living situation have yet to be made. As your mother is in Azkaban, the Potters are an option. Unless you have any other options you'd like to present, you will be staying there."

"My cousin Andromeda offered to let her stay in her home. We were already planning to go there for the Christmas holiday," Sirius spoke up.

"I can't stay at the Potters. I can't walk by that house without those memories coming back," Valerie decided.

"As you wish, Miss Lopez," Dumbledore agreed. "Do you have any further questions?"

"No."

"If that is the case, I'll be off. We will make the proper arrangements with the ministry and Andromeda for you to stay with her. Goodbye," said Dumbledore, making his way out of the room.

**December 21st, 1971**

* * *

"Over here, Sirius," A tall woman called from the opposite side of the platform. Sirius smiled brightly, grabbing Valerie's hand and making his way to his favorite cousin.

"'Dromeda!" Sirius hugged Andromeda tightly, as they hadn't even spoken in person for a year.

"This is Valerie," said Sirius, gesturing to his friend.

"It's lovely to finally meet you," said Andromeda, smiling. "Sirius talks about you so much in his letters, did you really give him a love po-"

"That's quite enough, Andromeda, we can share stories on the way home," Sirius interrupted. "Speaking of which, how will we be getting home?"

"Ted will be driving us, actually. Have you ever been in a car, Valerie?" Andromeda asked. Valerie nodded, her mother had driven a car. She was terrible at it, but it was necessary to make her shopping trips. The three of them entered the baby blue car, which looked like it had been from the fifties. Valerie admired that era, from the fashion to the cars. Sirius and Valerie packed their things away in the trunk and sat in the backseats.

"Hi, I'm Ted," said a man with mousy brown hair and hazel eyes. He extended a calloused hand- most likely from quidditch, Valerie assumed, and shook Sirius and Valerie's hands. "So, you must be Valerie," said Ted.

"Yeah."

"Sirius, this is my first time meeting you, isn't it?"

"Yup."

"Okay, I'll be driving then," Ted said quietly. "Unless you'd like to give it a spin," he said with a grin. Sirius grinned back, but Andromeda whacked Ted on the arm and flashed her hand at Sirius, threatening to do the same.

"He will not 'give it a spin', Edward. Now drive, we have to be home on time," said Andromeda. Ted smiled, turning on the engine and making the long, silent drive to their house.

**December 21st, 1971. Andromeda and Ted's house.**

* * *

"We're here," Ted announced. "Leave your things in the car, I'll take care of them. 'Dromeda will show you to your rooms."

Valerie and Sirius nodded, following Andromeda to the small, cozy looking home. Valerie had always hated living in her giant estate. She preferred something small, that felt like a home. She got that feeling from this house, and it made her smile. They entered through the front door, which opened in to a den. They removed their shoes and coats, making their way up the narrow, wooden steps.

"You have a lovely home," Valerie complemented, admiring the warm looking furniture in the living room.

"Thank you," said Andromeda. "I hope you'll like your room, Valerie. Sirius, the other room doesn't actually have any furniture in it, so you can either stay in Valerie's room or sleep in the living room."

"Wherever is fine by me," agreed Sirius. Valerie nodded in response, not really caring where Sirius slept. Ever since her date with Fabian, she'd been avoiding Sirius like the plague, so she secretly hoped Andromeda would have him sleep in the living room.

"Good. Sleep in Valerie's room, but don't stay up too late. We're one room over, we can hear what you're saying and doing."

"Sure thing, 'Dromeda," Sirius agreed sarcastically. Andromeda raised an eyebrow, and opened the door to Valerie's soon to be bedroom. The room had plain white walls, a queen bed with deep red comforters, brown sheets, and brown, red, and gold pillows. The floors were hardwood, the vanity was clearly vintage, and it was dark oak. The dresser matched it, the throw rug was a deep red and fuzzy, and the curtains were deep red with gold accents and tassels at the bottom. There was also a tall, dark oak bookshelf, already filled with books besides one shelf. Next to the bookshelf, which was located in the corner, was a lamp of the same wood and a deep red lamp shade. There was a dark brown chair next to it, with a red throw pillow. It reminded her of Hogwarts, and it felt warm and homey. It was exactly the opposite of her own home, where everything in her room had been white with purple accents. Her estate, really. It wasn't home anymore. The Lopez Estate had been massive, filled with white furniture, as her mother thought it looked crisp and elegant. Valerie vividly remembered the day she left for Hogwarts, when she accidentally spilled her grape juice on the white couch and her mother had smacked her sharply across the face, sending the drink down, earning her another hit. One for drinking juice on the couch, the next for spilling it. Valerie quickly snapped out of her memories, focusing on her new room, in her new home.

"This is perfect. How did you know?" Valerie asked, still in awe.

"Sirius told us everything. He told us exactly what to put in here, down to the last book on the shelf," Andromeda explained. Valerie smiled, while Sirius blushed. He knew her too well.

"Thank you so, so much," said Valerie.

"There's no need to thank me, dear. Thank Sirius. Well, I'll be down to make lunch. You can come downstairs in about," she said, glancing at her watch, "half an hour."

Sirius and Valerie nodded, making their way to sit on the fuzzy rug.

"You really like it? I was scared you wouldn't," asked Sirius.

"Are you kidding? I love this. I love it all. It's nothing like my old house, this is perfect. You even knew what books to get," she answered, getting up to look at the books.

"There's advanced transfiguration, fantasy, poetry, romance, books on magical creatures, even muggle books! Romeo and Juliet, The Outsiders, To Kill a Mockingbird, The Brothers Grimm fairy tales-"

"I actually flipped through that fairy tale book, and it seemed pretty weird to me. What type of name is Cinderella? Why did her sisters cut off their bloody toes?" Sirius interrupted.

"They were crazy and they were desperate to marry the prince. Did you get to the part where they attend the wedding and try to make nice, since Cinderella is now the queen, and some birds peck out their eyes?"

"No. I'm glad I didn't, actually. Never mind it, there's something I've been meaning to ask you," Sirius replied. Valerie winced, she knew what would come. "How was your date?"

"It was...good. We actually went on a couple more after. Fabian's nice, I like him."

"Is he your boyfriend?"

"He didn't ask me to be his girlfriend, so no."

"Ah."

"Yeah," Valerie mumbled, fiddling with the fairy tale book.

"Would you like to be his girlfriend?"

"If he asks me, I'll say yes."

"Oh."

"Yeah."

There was a long pause, and Sirius pretended to tweedle his thumbs, while Valerie tried to keep looking at the fairy tale book.

"Why did you kiss me? If you were just going to date somebody else, why?" Sirius inquired.

"I don't know, Sirius. I really don't know. I did it because I thought I liked you. Does that answer your question?" She answered sharply.

"I guess it does. We're good friends anyways, don't want to ruin that. Besides, we're only twelve."

"Exactly," she answered, rubbing the corner of the pages between her fingers, "I wouldn't want to lose you as a friend. Also, James would have endless amounts of teasing. Speaking of James, I already miss the sod. Remus, too. Even Peter."

"Peter?"

"He has funny things to say sometimes," Valerie offered kindly.

"Yeah, when he isn't acting like a puppy," he muttered. Valerie laughed, Peter really was like their puppy. He just followed them around and watched them hex slytherins. He stood and clapped, while they did all the work.

"Well, I'll let you write to our fellow troublemakers, and I'll go help Andromeda with making lunch. She cooks the muggle way with Ted once a week, and today is that day."

"You cook?"

"No, but I want to. I think I'd be good at it."

"Good luck, then. Try not to lose anything vital," Valerie said, waving goodbye to Sirius.

* * *

"That was GREAT! Muggles really are on to something," said Sirius excitedly.

"It's just a movie, honestly," said Valerie, rolling her eyes. "It was really great though. Thanks, Ted."

"Yeah, thanks!"

"No problem, guys. I was hoping you'd like it."

"I always really liked muggle movies, my mom used to take me to see them a lot," said Valerie. She felt a sharp pain in her gut, like somebody had ripped out her stomach. Her mother couldn't take her to see anymore movies, she had realized.

"Well, whatever, the snozzberries taste like snozzberries!" Sirius exclaimed.

"Well, I hope I can take the both of you to see more movies," said Ted.

"Please do. Willy Wonka is officially my favorite movie that I've ever seen," Sirius declared.

"Willy Wonka is the only movie you've seen," Valerie pointed out.

"It's still my favorite," he repeated.

"Let's get home, you two. Andromeda will be worried, I don't think she realizes how long movies actually are," said Ted.

The three of them traveled back to the house by car, something that still made Sirius feel uneasy. He wasn't sure he'd get used to being trapped inside of a tiny hunk of metal. At least the train to Hogwarts was large and open, and he knew it wouldn't crash. When they arrived home, it was already late enough to go to bed. Valerie and Sirius slipped under the covers, as far away from each other as possible. They were close, but not as close as she was to James, who she had been using as a teddy bear since she was six. _James, _she remembered. She still hadn't written to him, and she had been planning too, but it seemed as though she was always occupied. She always had her nose in one of the books Sirius had picked out, or planning out a prank to pull on Ted, and more pranks for when they got back to Hogwarts. When she wasn't doing that, she was frantically picking up after Sirius, who seemed to leave a trail of messes everywhere he went. From spilled food to stained shirts, the messy boy was always leaving behind some kind of mess that he didn't pick up. Valerie was used to picking up after herself, as she'd usually earn a slap from her mother if she didn't. Pushing the thoughts of her mother and the messes aside, Valerie sat up and pulled out her parchment and quill to write to her friends.

_James,_

_I miss you already, and it's only been a day. A really fun day, but still. I think this holiday may actually be the longest we've gone without seeing each other. It feels weird. Sirius is a lot of fun. He put itching powder in Teds' gloves, so when he put them on to head out, hilarity ensued. Andromeda was fuming mad, but Ted thought it was hilarious and took us out to see a muggle movie, Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory. Sirius loved it, and he seemed so amazed. I think I'll have to take him out to muggle London some time, he'd like it a lot. He hates cars, but I think he'd really take a liking to a motorbike. I'll have to get him one of those, too. He keeps making me laugh, every time I mention my mother he has a joke to distract me. I think he's the only one who really gets when I'm sad, even if I don't show it. Besides you, of course. Well, write to me, okay? Tell me what you've been up to._

_Love, _

_Val_

_Remus, _

_How has your holiday been? I've missed you, you usually keep Sirius under control for the rest of us. He put itching powder in Teds' gloves, and it was hilarious. We also went to see a muggle movie, which he was amazed by. Be sure to write me after that thing happens, I always worry if you're okay or not after it happens. It worries me sick, honestly. I wish I could tell Sirius and James and Peter, so we could find some way to help you, but I won't tell. You know I wouldn't betray you like that. Stay happy, and be sure to pull at least one prank at home, even if it's a simple one. Keep your inner Marauder strong. Have a great Christmas._

_Love, _

_Valerie_

Valerie sighed, leaning her head against the pillows, letters in her lap.

"Where's Bull?" Valerie asked quietly.

"In the corner, probably hiding on top of your bookshelf. He seems to like it there," Sirius answered.

"I like it here."

"I knew you would. 'Dromeda's nice," Sirius answered.

"Yeah. You and her, you're the white sheep," she said with a smile.

"My uncle Alphard, too. He's the one who sent that record player, by the way. He charmed it to work at Hogwarts, since muggle technology won't work there."

"Any other white sheep in the family?"

"Hmm... I think a few more. There's Cedrella Black. Not a Black anymore, though, she's a Weasley now. I can' remember anyone else right now, I'm half asleep."

"Okay. Well, go to sleep, you. I won't keep you awake longer."

* * *

The rest of the holiday went well, besides an incident where Valerie and Sirius had attempted to bake cookies without magic, from scratch. They had spent a good hour cleaning up the kitchen after the food fight that had ensued. The two had decided not to get each other Christmas presents. Andromeda and Ted had gotten Valerie a gold charm bracelet. It had four charms so far, one from Andromeda with a gold cupcake, and the other from Ted with a crescent moon. Sirius had also picked out two charms, despite her protests. The first was a happy looking dog, its tail charmed to wag back and forth. The second was a shooting star. The most interesting part of the holiday, however, was the letter she'd gotten from her mother. All it contained was a numbered list.

1. Do the right thing.

2. Remember your name. Valerie means brave, and strong.

3. Get me out of here.

4. I was drunk when I confessed. The Ministry knows this, and they're making my trial happen sooner. You will be asked to testify.

5. Do the right thing.

_Don't worry, _Valerie thought. _I will do the right thing. When I do, you'll end up right where you are now. _


	9. Chapter 8

**Hey! I've had writers block for a while now so I'm really happy to get back to writing. I'm gonna respond to your reviews right here from now on! Also, I know some of you might not like the time jump, but trust, some things will still get told in form of flashback. **

**Guest: Yes, I'm updating soon!**

**Guest: I hate to be a Debby Downer, but Sirius and Valerie won't get together for a while. They DEFINITELY will before they get out of Hogwarts, but I'm not going to tell you when they get together. Spoilers.**

**Hufflepuff girl14: I'll keep it up :)**

* * *

**July 19th, 1972. Ted and Andromeda's house.**

"Maybe you can visit James in an hour or two," the motherly woman said, a hand on Valerie's shoulder. Valerie nodded, making her way up to her room. She lay back on her bed, which one of the two house elves had made, not a single crease in the comforters fabric. She reminisced on the train ride that had occurred a month ago.

_"You're so dramatic, honestly," the onyx haired boy said, chuckling._

_"L-look who's talking! You declared your love for Remus in the middle of dinner, if I recall!" Valerie managed to get out through her sobs._

_"Under your love potion, Sugar!"_

_"That was mortifying, honestly," Remus said, blushing._

_"I'm sure Snivellus was ten times more mortified when Valerie turned his hair green!" said James._

_"That was great," Peter agreed._

_Valerie laughed through her tears, that had been a pretty good sight._

_"Hey, it was St. Patrick's day! He wasn't being very cheerful, so I figured that ought to work," she said, laughing._

_"I think the best prank we pulled was when we used that invisible glue potion on the Slytherin table chairs in the Great Hall," Sirius reminisced. _

_"I can't get up!" Valerie called, mocking Evan Rosier's horrified reaction. The five of them laughed, Valerie's tears turning to ones of joy. They quickly turned back to sad tears once she realized that she would get to pull pranks with the four boys for another two and a half months. _

"Valerie? Can you come down? Ted and I would like to talk with you," said Andromeda, standing in the doorway.

"Sure. Can I get changed first?"

Andromeda nodded. Valerie often preferred fashion over comfort, and today her flowing high waist maxi skirt and cropped blouse which was tied in the front, was definitely fashion and not comfort. She changed in to simple sweat pants and a plain shirt, and made her way down to the living room where Andromeda and Ted sat on a loveseat, one comfortable looking chair across from it, a coffee table in between the two seats. Valerie sat in the chair, nervous about what could be coming.

"I know you've only been here a short time, and you're only just getting used to living here. However, there are going to be a lot of changes in the next couple months," Ted started. Andromeda nodded in agreement.

"Ted and I are having a baby," Andromeda announced. Valerie grinned excitedly.

"Really? When?" She asked, almost jumping out of her chair.

"Well, the healers say that it's due in mid-March. We've only just found out, so we don't know if it's a boy or a girl," Andromeda explained.

"Oh, have you thought of any names yet?" Valerie asked in awe.

"For a girl, we were thinking of Violet, Alicia, or Nymphadora. For a boy, we're having some trouble with names, but we do like Brian," Ted stated. Valerie shuddered at the prospect of the innocent little girl being named after the worst people she knew.

"Definitely go with Nymphadora for a girl. It's very unique," Valerie advised.

"We were thinking that, too," Andromeda agreed.

"Well, now that we've told you our news, would you like to go visit James? Mrs. Potter has already sent an owl, she's expecting you today." Ted asked.

"Sure! How long can I stay?" Valerie asked excitedly.

"Only a week or two, okay? We'll miss you too much if you stay any longer," said Andromeda. "Go pack up some clothes, alright? We'll go by Floo."

Valerie dashed up the stairs, throwing two weeks worth of clothes and accessories in her bag. She was sure to put in a couple swimsuits, since the Potters' owned a quite large outdoor pool. She dashed back down, and grabbed a bit of Floo powder, tossing it in to the fire.

"Goodbye!"

"Bye, Valerie," said Andromeda and Ted. Andromeda rushed over and embraced her in a tight hug, something Valerie hadn't experienced in months. Sure, she'd hugged her friends, but this was the type of hug your mother gave you. Valerie hugged back, until Andromeda let go.

"Have fun, okay? Be safe," said Andromeda. Valerie nodded.

"Potter Manor!" She shouted, standing in the emerald green flames.

* * *

Within a few seconds, she found herself in the Potters' fireplace, and she walked out, smiling. This was her second home.

"Quite the welcome committee," she muttered at the empty living room.

"Valerie? Is that you, dear?" Mrs. Potters delicate voice called.

"Yeah!"

"Oh, well come on in the kitchen! Don't be a stranger," she said. Valerie shook her head. She'd missed James' mother, she was always nice to her. Valerie made her way through the large living room to stand in the doorway of the kitchen, where one Patricia Potter was making lunch.

"Oh, I've missed you! It feels odd without you here all the time," said Patricia. She gathered Valerie in a warm hug, rubbing her hand up and down the young girls' back. Valerie patted the red-haired woman on the back, missing her hugs. Mrs. Potter always smelled like flowers in the spring, and some other warm scent that she couldn't place.

"I missed you too," said Valerie, releasing from the hug. "Where's James?" she asked curiously.

"Oh, he's off in the pool with his friends, Remus and Peter. Why don't you go join them? Just settle your things in James' room, alright? Remus and Peter are both in one guest room. We have another, but I'm sure you wouldn't like to be alone," offered Patricia. Valerie nodded, her heart sinking a bit when Sirius' name wasn't mentioned.

"Sure thing. Oh, and the food smells great," Valerie complimented.

"Thank you, dear. Go have fun, alright?"

Valerie nodded and made her way up the spiraled staircase, dashing to the room where she'd always stayed. She dropped her bag on James' couch, and shut the door behind her. She changed in to her blue bikini as quickly as possible, and tossed on her sunglasses. She released her hair from its restrictive ponytail, letting the wavy brown locks cascade past her shoulders, ending at her ribs. The chocolate-eyed girl pulled off her shoes and set them neatly in the corner. She dashed as quickly as she could down the stairs again, exiting through the back door, where James, Remus, and Peter were immersed in a game of Marco Polo, with Peter being "it".

"Marco!" Peter shouted.

"Polo!" Valerie screamed from the backdoor, making her presence known. She ran forwards, flinging herself in to the water. She rose to the surface, where she felt James' arms embrace her in a bone-crushing hug.

"I missed you," said Valerie, hugging back. "I think this is the tenth hug I've gotten today, honestly," she said. James pulled back to look at his brown haired friend.

"I haven't seen you in a month! It's weird when you're not here every other day, really," said James.

"I know, I make a great addition to any home. Every family needs their own Valerie Lopez," she said, flipping her soaked hair behind her shoulder. Remus stood next to the pair, smiling.

"James, quit hogging the Valerie Lopez. My family hasn't received their shipment yet," he joked.

"I suppose you can borrow me," she sighed. Remus laughed.

"Oh, c'mere," said Valerie, pulling Remus in to a hug.

"I missed you. How was last months?" she whispered.

"A little worse. I guess _it _is used to you visiting afterwards. I'm not really myself at that point, you know?"

"Well, I won't miss a single one at school, promise," she said in a hushed tone. The two parted.

"What's up, Pete?" Valerie yelled. Peter was on the other side of the pool, starting to dive for knuts.

"Nothing, just about to dive for those knuts. How've you been?"

"Great. Hey, where's Sirius?" Valerie asked. James frowned a bit.

"His parents won't let him come, so he's going to leave tomorrow when his parents go to France," he explained.

"Oh," said Valerie. James nodded.

"You miss him, don't you?" Remus asked.

"I miss all my friends," said Valerie. Remus shrugged, and James smiled.

"But you miss your Sirius the most, don't you?" James teased.

"Shut up," she muttered, punching James on the shoulder.

"She doesn't deny it!" Peter called from the other side of the pool, diving once he had finished speaking.

Valerie rolled her eyes, and made her way out of the water. She lay back in one of the lounging chairs, letting the sun tan her already golden brown skin. Valerie had grown to somewhat appreciate her skin tone. Usually she hated looking different than the others, but she was beginning to like it.

* * *

_"Valerie, you know that I love you," Harmony insisted._

_"You hit me," Valerie said, almost shaking where she stood._

_"I've never layed a finger on you! That is a lie!" Harmony shrieked. _

_"You.. you smacked me for spilling juice on the floor. Twice. You punched me and gave me a black eye after I snuck out. You burnt my fingers because I played with matches. Every time I've ever been rude to you, I got hit. You're lying," Valerie retorted, whispering the last part._

_"How dare you call me a liar?" the frantic woman pressed, changing the subject._

_"Do you see this? How disobedient she is? How do you know she isn't making this up?" Harmony asked, giving the judge pleading eyes._

_"We shall see who's lying," said McLaird, the current Minister of Magic. He puffed a bit of smoke from the end of his wand, pointing it at a woman carrying a medium sized vial. The woman brought the potion to Harmony, who reluctantly sipped at it. Harmony shoved the vial at her daughter, looking resentful. Valerie sipped at the potion, feeling her emotions subside._

_"Valerie, has your mother ever purposefully hit you?" A woman by the name of Janet Bones asked, looking at Valerie with kind eyes._

_"Yes," Valerie answered._

_"Multiple times?" Janet pressed._

_"Yes," she responded solemnly, her personality disappearing with the potion._

_"And Harmony Lopez, have you hit your daughter on multiple occasions?" Janet asked, looking at Harmony with cold eyes._

_"Yes."_

_"Did you burn her fingers?"_

_"Yes."_

_"Did you give her a black eye?"_

_"Yes." _

_A murmur fell through the small crowd of people, but it fell silent in a few seconds._

_"Hijo de la gran puta," a voice seethed. _

_"Hold your tongue, Mr. Lopez. The evidence is conclusive, your wife will be sent to Azkaban. No vote will be necessary," Janet insisted.  
_

_"Good. Throw that _puta _in prison, where she belongs," he muttered. _

_"Me? I'm no whore, the only whores were the women I caught you with in my own house!" Harmony yelled, the effects of the potion wearing off. Janet looked shocked, as well as Valerie. _

_"You know I was an alcoholic! I was not nearly as guilty as you! I was drunk, thoughtless, and young!" He yelled back. Nobody was sure if they should stop the two._

_"I was just as old as you, Miguel! Sixteen years old, when you knocked me up, and I am so glad I left," said Harmony._

_"That's enough. Mrs. Lopez will be sentenced to two years in Azkaban, and no chance of gaining custody of Valerie Lopez when she is released. Valerie will live with Andromeda and Ted Tonks until she is of age, when she can decide where she would like to live."_

_"Why can't Valerie stay with me?" Miguel questioned._

_"You were denied custody in the past due to your drinking habits, however your records say you are now sober. I suppose it could be a possibility-" Janet started, before being interrupted. _

_"No! I can't. I can't leave my friends." Valerie cried._

_"I do believe it would be beneficial to Valerie's mental health to let her stay here. She's already been through a good portion of her first year at Hogwarts. On top of that, she doesn't wish to be with you. I believe it best that she stay with the Tonks'." said Janet firmly. _

_"Escort Mrs. Lopez away," Janet ordered._

* * *

**July 20th, 1972. Potter Manor.**

"You alright, Val?" A gentle voice asked.

"What? Oh, yes. Of course," Valerie lied, getting out of bed.

"You had the dream again, didn't you?" Remus asked. Valerie nodded, beginning to make the bed, straightening out the pillows.

"The trial was in February. When are you going to stop?"

"I don't know. I have that dream at least once a week. What time is it?"

"Time for lunch. Mrs. Potter told us to let you sleep in, she says you haven't been sleeping well."

Valerie rolled her eyes, and made her way down the staircase with Remus. Once she entered the kitchen, she immediately reached a lazy hand towards the platter for a sandwich. Her hand brushed against someone else's, causing her to jerk backwards.

"You take it," the offending hand offered.

"Thanks, Sirius," said Valerie nonchalantly.

"When do you reckon she'll notice?" James asked, watching the not-yet-awake girl nibble at her lunch.

"Soon, I guess," Peter added.

"Three...two.. one," Remus counted.

"SIRIUS!" Valerie shrieked, causing the boys to clap their hands over their ears. Valerie threw herself at Sirius, wrapping her arms around his neck, while his own arms made their way around her waist.

"Y'know, my parents hug like that," James remarked. The two pulled away immediately, blushing and returning to their lunch.

"So, how's your summer been, Sugar?"

"Really good, actually. Although, I feel like I'm missing something. Something important, that I have to tell you," she pondered. "Oh! I remember now. Andromeda's pregnant."

"You alright, Sirius?" Valerie asked.

" 'Dromeda's pregnant?"

"Yeah. I thought I made that pretty clear," Valerie said, rolling her eyes.

"ANDROMEDA'S PREGNANT! YES! NOW I'LL HAVE ANOTHER COUSIN WHO ISN'T MESSED UP IN THE HEAD!" Sirius cried, delighted.

* * *

**Sorry for this being a short chapter, guys, but writers block attacks me again. This is really all there is to their summer holidays, though. Not much else important happens. **


End file.
